§ Mr. CoeTo ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage if she will announce the television licence fees which will take effect from 1 April 1996. [3911]
§ Mr. SproatThe Government announced on 4 November 1993,Official Report, columns 309–10, that they had decided to link increases in the television licence fee to the retail prices index for the remaining three years of the BBC's current royal charter.
Licence fee increases are based on the annual RPI figure as at the previous September, in the same way as pensions and other state benefits. Application of the RPI figure of 3.9 per cent. for the year September 1995 to the current unrounded licence fees produces new rounded totals of £90.00 for a colour licence and £30.00 for a black and white licence. The necessary regulations to bring these fees into force will be laid before the House in due course.