Outraged Brits reveal why they’re now refusing to pay the BBC licence charge – as thousands and thousands drop their assist over ‘threatening letters, woke programmes and biased reporting’
As more than 3.5million people say they don’t need a TV licence, we spoke to outraged Brits who complain of having a ‘disillusionment with the woke BBC’.
One in eight people now avoid payment despite admitting they use the BBC‘s services, with some seeing the £174.50-a-year fee as ‘another tax’, arguing that the BBC ‘should be self-funding’.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, many angry Brits have explained why they no longer pay the licence fee, with claims that the BBC’s ‘high standards have plummeted’ in recent years and that they ‘no longer trust’ the corporation.
A series of scandals in recent months has also seen households across the UK cancel their TV licence as they ditch the BBC, described by some as a ‘bully’ for their ‘threatening letters’ demanding payment.
Former Tory MP and ex-BBC staffer Matthew Offord revealed that he stopped paying the licence fee after standing down from his position.
He said: ‘I stopped paying the licence fee in April, having struggled to do so for many years.
‘I concluded that I would pay it while I was an MP, but when it expired, I could not bring myself to do so. I also withdrew all my pension contributions from the scheme at the BBC.
‘The atmosphere was toxic when I was employed, but the continuing behaviour of individuals, the groupthink and the rejection of anti-Semitism in their reporting was too much for me.’
One in eight people now avoid payment despite admitting they use the BBC’s services, with some seeing the fee as ‘another tax’, arguing that the BBC ‘should be self-funding’
A series of scandals in recent months has also seen household cancel their TV licence as they ditch the BBC, described by some as a ‘bully’ for their ‘threatening letters’ demanding payment
Former Tory MP for Hendon and ex-BBC staffer Matthew Offord revealed that he stopped paying the licence fee after standing down from his position
Another former BBC staffer, Robin Whelan, 53, from Surrey, also said he stopped paying the fee when he left the corporation.
He said: ‘After many years of paying as a BBC staff member, I stopped. I took stock of what I actually used the BBC for. Its website, radio and a little catch-up.’
The future of the licence fee has come under scrutiny amid a sharp decline in the number of people watching traditional TV channels as viewers.
In November, it emerged that Panorama edited footage of a speech by Donald Trump to make it look like he encouraged supporters to ‘fight’ in the Capitol riots, culminating in the resignation of boss Sir Tim Davie.
A report by the Commons Public Accounts Committee revealed that 2.9million BBC viewers evaded paying the £174.50-a-year fee, costing the broadcaster £550million in lost income. While £617million was lost from 3.6million households declaring they don’t need a licence.
Reverend Norman Nicoll, 70, from Angus, cancelled his licence fee a year ago due to his ‘disillusionment with the woke BBC’.
He claims that the corporation’s ‘high standards have plummeted’ in recent years. The BBC don’t seem to be interested as to why I cancelled it,’ he said.
‘They just responded with an over-the-top, bordering on accusatory letter as to what might happen if it is found out that I am watching programmes without a licence.’
Jane Delmege, 71, from North Yorkshire, said she sees the fee as ‘another tax’ and the BBC ‘should be self-funding’.
‘BBC used to be the go to for news, but I no longer trust them and I am sick and tired of all the woke programmes,’ she said
‘I prefer to choose what I pay for.’
Pictured left to right: Robin Whelan, 53, from Surrey; Jane Delmege, 71, from North Yorkshire and Norman Nicoll, 70, from Angus
Cheryl Allen, 69, from Kent, added: ‘I am sick of everything the BBC has come to represent, moral corruption, fanciful ‘wokeish’ reporting and blinding hypocrisy.
‘Any decent programme they do make is usually sold on to the streaming platforms, so I rarely miss out and the long running successful programmes like Strictly no longer appeal to me.’
Warwick Alderman, 60, from London, admitted he has ‘never paid a penny’ of the licence fee and says he ‘never will’.
He claimed he was covered by his mother’s licence, but when she died in 2012, he says his details were passed over by the Department for Work and Pensions.
He said: ‘I began to be bombarded by their threatening letters. I have never buckled to their threats, and never will.’
Simon Mellish, 53, from Dorset, revealed he hasn’t had a TV since 2016 and claimed he ‘will never have a TV licence ever again’.
He said: ‘I don’t watch any live TV, and back in 2016, my children were very much into films which were accessible via Netflix.
‘In fact, on one occasion, I put the licence people on notice in an attempt to get to them to stop contacting me.
‘In all reality, I’m never at home enough to watch a great deal of TV, so another reason to not have a licence.
‘The BBC is largely irrelevant now and doesn’t serve the public as it did 30-odd years ago.
‘I even received a refund of £66.00 when I notified the BBC.’
Pictured left to right: Cheryl Allen, 69, from Kent; Warwick Alderman, 60, from London and Simon Mellish, 53, from Dorset
Denise Colby, 69, from Henley-on-Thames, stopped paying the licence fee this year, saying the BBC ‘has had enough from me over the years.’
She said: ‘Netflix is only £5.99 per month, and I watch catch-up on other channels.
‘I no longer feel obligated to pay for things I don’t watch.’
After paying the fee in November, Denise Smith, 61, from London, said she felt like a ‘mug’ when she found out the number of households that evade the fee.
She said: ‘I regretfully paid £174.50 two weeks ago, which I could not afford due to being a self-employed working widow who hadn’t had any work for the previous five weeks, and never claims benefits.
‘Literally was too frightened not to pay it. Seems like I’ve been a mug!’
Pete Cannon, 70, from London, moved to Asia in 1995 for work, and said that ‘it broke the habit of watching British television’ and he hasn’t paid the fee since returning.
He said: ‘TV became an intrusive waste of time. TV became numbing, irritating and emasculating; comics unfunny and TV personalities grotesques. Life is too short.
‘I watch movies, read books, newspapers and periodicals. I watch footy at the ground or pub.’
He did admit that he ‘would be happy to pay a separate subscription’ for BBC Orchestras and Radio 3, saying they must be ‘funded and protected’.
Pictured left to right: Denise Colby, 69, from Henley-on-Thames; Pete Cannon, 70, from London and Denise Smith, 61, from London
Speaking to The Telegraph in April, Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy acknowledged that there are ‘problems’ with the fee and that ‘fewer and fewer people are paying it’.
‘It’s unenforceable and particularly I’ve been concerned about the way it’s been enforced in the past, with women – particularly vulnerable women – targeted for enforcement action, and the BBC itself has accepted that’, the MP for Wigan added.
On December 16, Ms Nandy set out her vision for the funding of the BBC from 2028 as it enters its once-a-decade charter renewal. Ms Nandy defended the scandal-hit national broadcaster, heralding it as ‘an institution like no other’.
The charter sets out the BBC’s public purpose and is the constitutional basis for the corporation, which is predominately funded through the licence fee, as paid by UK households who watch TV.
The Culture Secretary has published a Green Paper, setting out potential reforms of the broadcaster, which ‘consults on a wide range of options being considered for the future of the BBC’, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport said.
Ms Nandy is looking at other options for the corporation to raise funds, including allowing the BBC to run adverts across all of its services. Another option would see the corporation restrict adverts to iPlayer, the BBC website, and videos posted on YouTube.
One possibility is that older shows on iPlayer will become premium content behind a paywall after being free-to-air for a limited period.
Tim Davie, BBC Director-General, said: ‘We welcome the publication of the Government’s Green Paper and the start of the public consultation on the future of the BBC.
‘We urge everyone who cares about the success of the UK’s world-leading creative industries to have their say.
‘At the BBC, we want change, so we can continue to deliver for the UK for generations to come.
‘We want to secure a public service BBC that is independent, sustainably funded for the long term, and meets our audience’s needs.’
In November, a report by the Commons Public Accounts Committee (PAC) said that the BBC is ‘not doing enough to enforce collection of the licence fee, which is unfair to the vast majority of households who do pay for a licence’.
The BBC said that it has ‘become harder to get people to answer their doors’ compared to five years ago ‘which limits the enforcement effectiveness’.
The corporation spent £166million, 4.3 per cent of its entire income, on collecting the licence fee.
A BBC spokesperson said: ‘Funding is one of the considerations of the Government’s ongoing consultation on the future of the BBC.
‘We welcome this debate, and we will be responding to this consultation in full.
‘Latest figures show 23.8million households have a licence, which is nearly 9 in 10 households that require one.’
A spokesperson for the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport said: ‘We need to make sure the BBC has a sustainable funding model that supports its vital work, but is also fair to those who pay for it.
‘The Charter Review will provide an opportunity for people to have their say on the broadcaster’s long-term future.’
