§ Mr. FlynnTo ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage what is the(a) cost and (b) percentage of the full television licence paid by (i) pensioners, (ii) registered blind people and (iii) registered deaf people; if she will make it her policy to reduce the cost of the television licence for each of these groups; and if she will make a statement. [7955]
§ Mr. Sproat[holding answer 6 December 1996]: Television licence fees are currently £89.50 for colour licences and £30 for black and white. Registered blind people are entitled to a reduction of £1.25 from the full licence fee. However, a sound-only television monitor, available from the Royal National Institute for the Blind, may be operated without a licence. Moreover, blind people can enjoy the full range of the BBC's radio services. There is no general concession for pensioners or for registered deaf people. However, pensioners and registered blind and deaf people living in qualifying accommodation can benefit from the concessionary television licence scheme, under which licences cost £5. If the Government introduced reduced-fee television licences for all pensioners and registered blind and deaf people, this would be very costly in terms of lost revenue for the BBC. it would lead to a significant rise in licence fees for all other viewers, irrespective of their means, which is why the Government have no such plans.
The Government have encouraged the BBC to introduce a range of payment options to enable television 221W licence fee payers to spread the cost of their licence. However, the Government do not consider the television licence fee a proper instrument of social policy: the appropriate way to help those with special needs is through the pensions and benefits system.