§ 1. Mr. Winnickasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he has received any proposals for increases in the television licence.
§ Mr. WinnickAs an application may be made, will the Minister accept that the BBC has a duty to provide an adequate amount of current affairs coverage on its main television channel? There is quite a lot of discontent over recent happenings. Will the Government accept that if there is an increase in the licence fee it will be all the more necessary to have a much smaller licence fee for retired people living on their own?
§ Mr. HurdThe hon. Gentleman's first point is entirely a matter for the corporation.
A free licence for all pensioners would cost £250 million and that would put up the fee for others to about £70 for that purpose alone. That is too much.
§ Mr. MacleanDoes my right hon. Friend think it is correct for the Home Office to go on being the tax collector for the BBC when not one right hon. or hon. Member, nor even the Committee of Public Accounts, can question how the BBC spends the £700 million which the Home Office so kindly collects for it?
§ Mr. HurdThe system has been criticised and examined many times over. All I can say to my hon. Friend at the moment is that we have no plans to change it.
§ Mr. KaufmanFollowing the right hon. Gentleman's unfortunate interview with The Sunday Times a little while ago, will he give the House a categorical assurance that the Government have no plans for the privatisation of the BBC, no plans for the introduction of commercial sponsorship of BBC programmes, and no plans whatever for the introduction of commercial advertisements either on BBC television or on BBC radio?