My Lords, this has been a very good debate about a very important topic. It is important to pick up that this amendment, signed by all sections of your Lordships’ House, was also spoken to by every side of the Committee, and is therefore reflective of the difficulty that the Government might have if they were to take this matter much further. There would be considerable opposition to the overall concept implied by the two clauses here and strong agreement about the need to ensure that the arrangements that may come out of Mr Perry’s report should not be implemented until at least after 1 April 2017.
We have heard from those who work with and have worked with the BBC, and from those who just watch and absorb its activities. All the contributions were redolent of a feeling that we have created a national institution that is admired and loved widely, not just in this country, and one that, as has been pointed out, needs safeguarding. The words of the noble Lords, Lord Grade and Lord Stoneham, and my noble friend Lord Rooker, about the question of whether or not this is a stalking horse for a much bigger prize, the destruction of the financing arrangements under which the BBC is currently safeguarded—the use by the enemies of the BBC of a Trojan horse—rang true. We must be very careful as we go forward on this matter.
There is of course no objection to the review of the enforcement regime; it is a good thing. It may well be a solution in search of a problem and, as the noble Lord, Lord Grade, said, much is said here that is not accurate in practice. What exactly the offence is that has been committed, and how it is dealt with through the courts of present compared to how it might be dealt with in future, is a very technical issue. It will have wide implications but it is still at heart an issue that needs to be narrowed right down to the precise issue that is being questioned. It would not be wise or sensible to see the review as being something more widely about the BBC; it must be about the question of the collection of a fee for the receipt of broadcasting communications, not the funding of the BBC.
However, the implications of any recommendations, and whether they would generate more income or less as a result of the processes that would follow the review, have to be considered. Of course, it would be completely wrong for the Government to introduce a significant change before the start of the next licence fee period on 1 April 2017—whichever Government were in power.
2.15 pm
Reading the briefing for this, I was struck by one thing that I had not picked up—perhaps I should have done—which I thought was so important. We are of course in a situation where the BBC is absorbing huge reductions relative to where it might have been subject to arrangements made in previous charter and licence reviews. The figures I have are that by the end of 2016-17 the funding available to the BBC to spend on services from the UK licence fee will be 26% lower in real terms than in 2011-12. That is a pretty amazing efficiency cut. Of course, it is not just the freezing of the licence fee at £145.50 but the absorption
of new funding that previously had been met by others, including the BBC World Service, which has been mentioned.
There is obviously quite an issue here. It is an important review and one that we need to look at very carefully. It was good that we were reminded of the commitment given by the Government when the 2010 licence fee settlement was signed, to provide,
“a full financial settlement to the end of the year 2016-17. No new financial requirements or fresh obligations of any kind will be placed on the BBC and/or licence fee revenues in this period”.—[Official Report, 7/7/11; col. 4.]
That seems to be a very firm and solemn commitment.
Finally, I think I heard the Minister say in the previous debate on the clause stand part that the outcome from the report should feed into the charter and licence review. It would calm a lot of those concerned by this issue if the Minister could change that conditional to a certainty.