Television Licence Refunds

HC Deb 05 November 1973 vol 863 cc586-8

2. Mr. Clinton Davis

asked the Minister of Posts and Telecommunications if he will introduce legislation to enable refunds to be made on television licences on compassionate grounds where a person is unable to derive full benefit from his licence.

Sir J. Eden

No, Sir. Statutory authority to enable refunds to be made already exists, but it has to be exercised very sparingly to prevent the licensing system becoming unmanageable.

Mr. Davis

Is not the attitude of the Department totally rigid and inflexible? One finds cases involving serious compassionate grounds, for example a pensioner who finds he cannot maintain hire payments for a colour television and who wants to convert to black and white, but is unable to do so and gets absolutely no support from the Department and, indeed, receives a stereotyped letter. Is not this quite wrong? Should it not be investigated fully?

Sir J. Eden

A balance has to be struck between the needs to maintain revenue and to keep costs as low as possible. There are special categories for refund which are set out and clearly understood. I fully understand the point made by the hon. Gentleman about elderly people or other hardship cases, but the way in which to help elderly people is not through an operation of this kind but through the social services provisions.

Mr. Costain

Will my right hon. Friend consider this again, even to the extent of giving a credit note for those who have such exceptional circumstances, particularly when the interval is as long as six months, because there are some real injustices?

Sir J. Eden

I am always considering issues of that kind, and I should be very ready to do so. But I must emphasise that there are about 17 million licences in force and, within that figure, an enormous range of hardship, different factors and different individual circumstances, which is why there must be a system which is as simple and correct as possible. An involved and complicated scheme would cost much more to administer, and the net result would be likely to be an increase in the licence fee.

Mr. William Edwards

Will the Minister accept that there is need for a complete re-examination of the whole basis upon which television licences are paid? Will he accept also that this is a form of taxation, and in many areas a lot of people will be withholding payment—there will be sympathy for them—and he will be bringing Parliament into disrepute because he will give way on these matters only when there has been widespread law-breaking, and only then will be reform the law?

Sir J. Eden

The method by which the BBC receives its revenue was considered previously. It was considered also by the previous Government. It has been studied several times from a totally fresh and objective point of view, and all these studies have so far concluded that there is no improvement to be made on the present arrangement.

Mr. Davis

In view of the unsatisfactory nature of the reply, I beg to give notice that I shall seek to raise the matter at the earliest opportunity.