Tv Licenses For The Over 75s

[Hylander]

If anyone is interested here is a link from Age UK who have been campaigning for some time to get us the free TV licence.    I have sent in my 10pence worth of what I feel and think about it all.

Copied from the Age UK email to me.     On 1st August, about 4 million older people will lose their free TV Licences. I've just written to the Government and the BBC asking them to sit down and agree on a solution to save free TV Licences for over-75s before it's too late. Please will you do the same?

It's very easy to do, just click here to send them an email.        

Thank you so much,

 

Hope this link works...

 

https://campaigns.ageuk.org.uk/page/64039/action/1?ea.tracking.id=Email1

 

[OldBerkshireBoy]

Didn`t the government create this situation a few years back when they gave the BBC a choice from two lousy ideas? Somebody called it Hobsons choice I recall. 

[CambridgeCabby]

This added expense plus the current move towards forestalling the inflation (wages) linked increase in state pensions will certainly cause difficulties for those pensioners relying on only a state pension.

 

[SANTED]

If they cut back on some of the obscene salaries paid to certain “celebrity” broadcasters then they could manage without depriving millions of pensioners of a bit of entertainment.

A certain pundit reputably on £1.75 million a year springs to mind and a host of others who personally wouldn’t be missed if they went

 

[SteveO]

It is about time the idea of a "TV Tax" was abolished. There are so many ways to consume TV content nowadays that don't involve the BBC that it is wrong for consumers to have to pay for a service that is increasingly promoting its own political agenda, is out of touch with it's actual customer base and which, by virtue of a captive source of funding, has no commercial accountability whatsoever. I would far rather we had a subscription service which allowed you access to BBC content by choice, not compulsion and which would ensure that the Beeb produced material that their customers want to watch/listen to. For too long we have seen BBC programming dumbed down and loaded with left-liberal political messaging in pursuit of their target demographic, which seems to be the under 35's and who in all actuality consume most of their TV via their phones from sources other than the BBC. A move to subscription would also encourage the BBC to live within its means and not pay huge amounts of money to its "talent" and I use the word advisedly. 

[Cheesey69]

All the poor pensioners?

very subjective that one. My neighbour sits in a house worth over 300,000 car under 2 years old, private final salary pension and enjoys sailing in the Medway. 
Means test the TV license because not every pensioner are poor nor every pensioner rich

[VetChugger]

I, for one, remain totally convinced we need a national and independent TV broadcaster. Yes, there are valid questions and criticisms of both policy and progamming but, overall, we still see many examples of excellent drama productions, some really good journalism (rarer I'll admit) and a recorded resource such as iplayer. I don't resent the licence fee at all and willingly pay this and fervently hope the BBC survives and actually regains some of its independence and fearless reporting!

[SANTED]

49 minutes ago, Cheesey69 said:

All the poor pensioners?

very subjective that one. My neighbour sits in a house worth over 300,000 car under 2 years old, private final salary pension and enjoys sailing in the Medway. 
Means test the TV license because not every pensioner are poor nor every pensioner rich

 

“All the poor pensioners” 

I must have missed that bit. Where did it say that?

The fact that you know someone who’s doing very well thankyou does not detract from the truth that many pensioners are not. Is it too much to ask that they should be afforded some consideration in their later life

or should we just go the whole hog and stop their free prescriptions and bus passes as well

[addicted]

If your  pensioner neighbour appears to be doing very well it's probably because they have lived their working   life in a manner conducive to not having to live our their retirement  in reduced circumstances - are they to be penalised for that?

 

 

Carole

[trambo]

1 hour ago, SANTED said:

 

A certain pundit reputably on £1.75 million a year springs to mind and a host of others who personally wouldn’t be missed if they went

 

Sorry but this is a simplistic and ill-considered argument. If they are being paid £1.75 million, whoever your referring to, would obviously be missed by a lot of people if not you. That the BBC produces shows were stars can ask for that sort of salary is another matter.

1 hour ago, SteveO said:

It is about time the idea of a "TV Tax" was abolished. There are so many ways to consume TV content nowadays that don't involve the BBC that it is wrong for consumers to have to pay for a service that is increasingly promoting its own political agenda, is out of touch with it's actual customer base and which, by virtue of a captive source of funding, has no commercial accountability whatsoever. I would far rather we had a subscription service which allowed you access to BBC content by choice, not compulsion and which would ensure that the Beeb produced material that their customers want to watch/listen to. For too long we have seen BBC programming dumbed down and loaded with left-liberal political messaging in pursuit of their target demographic, which seems to be the under 35's and who in all actuality consume most of their TV via their phones from sources other than the BBC. A move to subscription would also encourage the BBC to live within its means and not pay huge amounts of money to its "talent" and I use the word advisedly. 

I agree with a lot of your argument but what do you replace the license with and stop the drift to popularism that has plagued the BBC in recent years. Even Radio 3 and Radio 4 have succumbed to this trend of late. A national independent broadcaster is a asset to the the culture and general life of this nation so while agreeing the licence is outdated I really do not think replacing it with by subscription service is the answer. It should be there for everyone on demand when required. As for it's political stance I find it rather boringly stuck in the middle and unwilling to confront issues but I accept this is probably down to my personal politics. Compered to Channel 4 and Sky News which in my eyes seem to have a very left wing bias I find it's news service tame and boring.

Fred

[Chelsea14Ian]

I think its about time that we stopped paying for the BBC,and they made there own way in the world.Gone are the days when  they lead there way in broadcasting. There are some very good programming on the BBC,but there's also lots of rubbish. Some of there presenters and reporters are in my opinion poor compared  to some of the greats of the past.And yes many of them are overpaid. 

[Hylander]

2 hours ago, SANTED said:

If they cut back on some of the obscene salaries paid to certain “celebrity” broadcasters then they could manage without depriving millions of pensioners of a bit of entertainment.

A certain pundit reputably on £1.75 million a year springs to mind and a host of others who personally wouldn’t be missed if they went

 

In my letter of complaint to the BBC , your post is more or less word for word what I put.   Great minds think alike and all that..    They should get rid of all these odd balls that we are supporting , yes supporting.   Most of them cannot even speak the Queen's English, and I am not referring to a foreign person learning our language but some of the idiots where every other word is like, like, like.      Watching tripe and that is only word for it, with loads of bad language is not my cup of tea.     

There are a few ie the McCartneys and Stewarts of this world that are rich , but most of us, just about scrape through each month.      It is a disgrace and the BBC should be ashamed of itself.     When you are young you can get out, when you are old and may be have ill health and are on your own , your TV is your friend and company.   Nice one BBC.

 

 

 

 

 

[Cheesey69]

1 hour ago, SANTED said:

 

“All the poor pensioners” 

I must have missed that bit. Where did it say that?

The fact that you know someone who’s doing very well thankyou does not detract from the truth that many pensioners are not. Is it too much to ask that they should be afforded some consideration in their later life

or should we just go the whole hog and stop their free prescriptions and bus passes as well

Selective reading. I said if you can afford it, pay it. As everything in life I want to support those that can’t. 
And yes you are asking the generation’s below to foot the bill but that is what society is about. 

 

55 minutes ago, addicted said:

If your  pensioner neighbour appears to be doing very well it's probably because they have lived their working   life in a manner conducive to not having to live our their retirement  in reduced circumstances - are they to be penalised for that?

 

 

Carole

No but you must be expected to pay for it as well. 
It’s very possible you can now be retired longEr than you work. 
I'm not being harsh but future retirees are going to have it much harder than any recent generation and I fear the public will need to raid the nest eggs of those that have retired. 
After all just one visit and continued medication for a heart condition could entirely wipe any contribution made in the form of tax made. 
Times that many times. 
Social care for Dementia and other age related disease is cost that will outstrip this country ability to fund is a topic that various party’s have sidestepped only to be shown be this COVID. 
Trust me. Unfortunately this and many other schemes will be brought forward in the years to come and this will be the least of them. 
I’m fearing the days of sitting in a house worth thousands and then asking the public to pay for care while the house gets left as inheritance will slowly get gaslighted into the mainstream 

[Hylander]

I wont quote your post as rather long sorry.      When my Mum who had saved all her life and never ever went on a holiday, went into a Home she had to pay for everything.       In the four years she was in the home it cost her over £150,000.    No one paid for Mum and yet she had paid all her life.    You will find that most pensioners who own their own homes , will lose their homes to pay for there upkeep in a Home.      They came from a generation where you did not squander money on gadgets and holidays abroad, they saved.   There was no such thing as credit.    You saved up for what you wanted.     Albeit there are always a few that didnt.   My Mum had an awful expression and at the time she used to say it I used to cringe, but she would say,  Dad and me did not water our money up the wall.    What this requires is a mere pittance in the scheme of things but it means so much to many.     

I , although I am getting on am supporting our real elderly here.

 

[Cheesey69]

Trust me I wish it was different. My other half works in this sector and I will fight as hard as I can. 
But it’s getting harder. As pensions dry up unless you can put 50% of your wages and final salaries schemes have gone, houses getting out of reach for the average Joe, unemployment rising fast, rent 3/4 of your monthly income eyes are going to look for shared pain. 
Boris has said the triple lock needs looking at its going to be a tough sell for those on universal perks like the tv and winter allowance and even tougher to ask the general public to pay even more for care homes. 
sad times

[Ray]

The poorest pensioners, those who receive Pension Credit will still qualify for a free licence.

The government used to fund free licences but passed responsibility to the BBC.

I'm not a fan of the BBC or the Government but it is easy to see how the BBC were made the 'fall guy' in this!

[Hylander]

I agree with you Ray,   this is something that B and his cohorts should really look at, especially if they ever and I mean ever want to get into government again.     Because the elderly are not big business they are not interested.     The Government departments waste so much money ,   millions here , millions there, they talk about it as if it was nothing at all and yet to sustain a benefit to our real elderly is a disgrace.       Most of us would not be here if they had not gone to war when they did and this is how we repay them.

 

Mods if too political please take down.      

[rightsaidfred]

OK as one who will now loose the privilege of a free license but will not be to badly affected financially I have taken time to digest the various views expressed here, my view on this may well appear controversial but here it is anyway.

If the free license was still payed for out of the public purse I would have no issue with it being means tested although I am not sure pension credit is necessarily the right benchmark.

As it is now coming out of the BBC coffers I think it is time for the compulsory license to be done away with and for the BBC to finance themselves along the lines of ITV etc.

Sadly the BBC is no longer the institution it once was, its sports coverage is no longer of much consequence, the so called comedy is largely niche, some dramas are good some unintelligible, the documentaries and news programmes all carry a PC bias added to which the large number of repeats, personally I doubt the BBC makes up 5% of our viewing time, if you don`t want to pay for subscription TV there are still a large number of free to air channels some of the them showing the same repeats as the BBC, the only thing the BBC does well at the moment are state occasions and while they are important I wonder how much of that is because they have a virtual monopoly on them.

Fred

 

[Chelsea14Ian]

Fully agree with you,as I said think its time they made there own way.

[unclemike]

2 minutes ago, rightsaidfred said:

the only thing the BBC does well at the moment are state occasions

do they?

2012,  the most important state occasion for many years, the jubilee water  pageant,will not be seen again in our lifetime, what did the bbc show? more of anneka rice's backside and jubilee babies than boats , the royal party were shown along with the canoeists but little /no footage of the 750 boats following the royal barge.
every one who applied had to provide a story to be invited, no mention of any of this, one example was a group of disabled ex-servicemen who crewed a narrow boat and took 3 weeks to get there.also many little ships from dunkirk.

greg dyke head of BBC said they had done a good job

[Poppy]

16 minutes ago, rightsaidfred said:

OK as one who will now loose the privilege of a free license but will not be to badly affected financially I have taken time to digest the various views expressed here, my view on this may well appear controversial but here it is anyway.

If the free license was still payed for out of the public purse I would have no issue with it being means tested although I am not sure pension credit is necessarily the right benchmark.

As it is now coming out of the BBC coffers I think it is time for the compulsory license to be done away with and for the BBC to finance themselves along the lines of ITV etc.

Sadly the BBC is no longer the institution it once was, its sports coverage is no longer of much consequence, the so called comedy is largely niche, some dramas are good some unintelligible, the documentaries and news programmes all carry a PC bias added to which the large number of repeats, personally I doubt the BBC makes up 5% of our viewing time, if you don`t want to pay for subscription TV there are still a large number of free to air channels some of the them showing the same repeats as the BBC, the only thing the BBC does well at the moment are state occasions and while they are important I wonder how much of that is because they have a virtual monopoly on them.

Fred

 

Unfortunately you still need a TV licence if you watch or record 'live' TV or use BBC iPlayer.(That's not just BBC !)

If you don't do any of these, you don't need a licence. So you don't need a licence to read anything on the BBC website, or if you watch clips on the BBC Sport app or website (though if it's a live stream, you will need one).

[rightsaidfred]

7 minutes ago, Poppy said:

Unfortunately you still need a TV licence if you watch or record 'live' TV or use BBC iPlayer.(That's not just BBC !)

If you don't do any of these, you don't need a licence. So you don't need a licence to read anything on the BBC website, or if you watch clips on the BBC Sport app or website (though if it's a live stream, you will need one).

Exactly but if you do away with the license then freetoview becomes exactly that free to everyone, BBC could still run their iPlayer the same as ITV etc do with their versions and those that wish to could continue to purchase whatever subscription channels they do now, given the increasing use of streaming I wonder how long traditional broadcasting will continue anyway, the BBC are doing away with their red button service pushing people onto internet viewing.

22 minutes ago, chameleon said:

do they?

2012,  the most important state occasion for many years, the jubilee water  pageant,will not be seen again in our lifetime, what did the bbc show? more of anneka rice's backside and jubilee babies than boats , the royal party were shown along with the canoeists but little /no footage of the 750 boats following the royal barge.
every one who applied had to provide a story to be invited, no mention of any of this, one example was a group of disabled ex-servicemen who crewed a narrow boat and took 3 weeks to get there.also many little ships from dunkirk.

greg dyke head of BBC said they had done a good job

I understand your point and while to the likes of us its an omission I would imagine to the vast majority the coverage was probably quite well balanced.

Fred  

[unclemike]

cannot agree, even non boaters didn't see the pageant, was supposed to be a program about a water based pageant, didn't happen

[BroadAmbition]

I would imagine to the vast majority the coverage was probably quite well balanced.

Really?  The give away clue here was the title of the day - 'Thames Pageant'  The BBC coverage of the actual event was woeful.  We personally received no end of comments saying how disappointed they were to have NOT seen the boats or the river (Much).  The BBC themselves I seem to remember received tens of thousands of complaints at the lack of footage of the river / boats / stories to tell that were available.

The BBC on the day were woeful

Griff

[rightsaidfred]

12 minutes ago, BroadAmbition said:

I would imagine to the vast majority the coverage was probably quite well balanced.

Really?  The give away clue here was the title of the day - 'Thames Pageant'  The BBC coverage of the actual event was woeful.  We personally received no end of comments saying how disappointed they were to have NOT seen the boats or the river (Much).  The BBC themselves I seem to remember received tens of thousands of complaints at the lack of footage of the river / boats / stories to tell that were available.

The BBC on the day were woeful

Griff

I agee and I am the last one to defend the BBC but the number of complaints compared to the watching audiance is not that great, without being sexist what do most women prefer babies and royalty or boats, at the end of the day this has little relevance to the thread itself.

Fred