§ Mr. LetwinTo ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment she has made of the impact on elderly residents of warden-accommodation of the rule that free television licences are available only if all the residents of such accommodation qualify for the concession. [28878]
§ Dr. Howells[holding answer 21 January 2002]: Under the Accommodation for Residential Care (ARC) concessionary scheme, television licences are available at a fee of £5 for each unit of qualifying accommodation. The requirement that sheltered housing must be provided for disabled people, mentally disordered people or retired people aged 60 or over is one of a number of qualifying criteria for entitlement to the concession. The ARC scheme as a whole was examined by the independent review panel on the future funding of the BBC in 1999, 723W but the panel recommended that the existing scheme should be retained, since it was unable to identify a superior alternative funded from the licence fee.
As announced last year, the Government propose to introduce measures to preserve the rights of ARC beneficiaries who remain in accommodation provided or managed by a local authority, a housing association or a development corporation, when the social mix or the level of warden cover change. Consultations between officials and the BBC about the necessary amendments to the television licence fee regulations are currently under way. We intend to bring forward these amendments as soon as we can but it is important that in doing so we do not create any new anomalies or unnecessary administrative burdens.
§ Mr. WoodTo ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans she has to extend the free television licence scheme to all pensioners. [29652]
§ Dr. HowellsThe Government have no plans to extend free television licences to pensioners below the age of 75.