BBC licence fee won’t be scrapped until at least 2027, government confirms

It comes after it was announced that the annual licence fee will increase by £5 in 2025

The BBC TV licence won’t be scrapped until at least 2027, the government has confirmed.

It comes after it was announced that the annual licence fee will increase by £5 to £174.50 in 2025.

The £5 increase will come into force in April, and is significantly less than the £10.50 rise that was applied earlier this year. The government has returned to calculating the increase by using an annual inflation rate rather than a monthly one, reports BBC News.

The cost of a TV licence is due to increase in line with inflation each year until 2027, following an agreement made in 2022.

The government will examine the issue of BBC funding as part of the charter review process, before the BBC’s current royal charter expires in 2027. It “will incorporate independent expert advice, stakeholder views and public consultation to decide on how best to support the BBC’s long-term future.”

Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy also said there would be “an honest national conversation about the broadcaster’s long-term future”.

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Back in 2022, it was revealed that the licence fee would be abolished in 2027 according to leaked reports from the previous government.

Culture Secretary at the time Nadine Dorries said the current licence fee funding model would be scrapped and that this announcement related to it “will be the last”.

Earlier this year, there was increase in the TV licence fee following a two year freeze period.

The fee for a colour licence increased to £169.50 up from the previous £159 fee, while a black and white licence cost £57, increasing from £53.50 last year.

Money raised from the licence fee pays for BBC shows and services – including TV, radio, the BBC website, podcasts, iPlayer and apps.