Tory leadership candidates including Rishi Sunak and Nadhim Zahawi say they could SCRAP the BBC licence fee after it reveals its latest roll-call of high paid stars
- Rishi Sunak and Nadhim Zahawi have both indicated that the £157 levy could go
- New figures showed national broadcaster splashing out on big pay rises for stars
- Government had already suggested fee could go by 2027 in shake up of system
Top Tories vying to replace Boris Johnson have suggested they could scrap the BBC licence fee if they take power.
Former chancellor Rishi Sunak and his successor Nadhim Zahawi have both indicated that the £159 levy could go, as they seek to win backing from Tory MPs to enter No10.
It came out as new figures showed the national broadcaster is splashing out on big pay rises for its top stars, despite the corporation claiming it needs to cut costs.
Six of its top ten highest-earning stars saw their wages rise year-on-year, the broadcaster’s annual report revealed.
But despite this, director-general Tim Davie claimed the BBC was ‘showing incredible restraint’ in the ‘talent’ pay market.
Mr Sunak is reported to have told the Common Sense Conservatives hustings last night that he would be willing to axe the tax. And this morning Mr Zahawi said he does not rule out scrapping it.
The Chancellor told LBC radio: ‘We have to review how the BBC is funded. We have to look at how it is sustainable in the future. We have to review everything. Nothing is off the table.’
Former chancellor Rishi Sunak and his successor Nadhim Zahawi have both indicated that the £159 levy could go, as they seek to win backing from Tory MPs to enter No10.
Mr Sunak is reported to have told the Common Sense Conservatives hustings last night that he would be willing to axe the tax. And this morning Mr Zahawi has said he does not rule out scrapping it.
About half of the organisation’s 74 top on-screen performers were given a pay rise last year – including Naga Munchetty with a hike of more than £100,000.
The number of stars who are now paid six-figure sums had risen from 172 to 192, with this group’s pay also rising from nearly £32million to £34.6million.
Critics last night said it was ‘high time’ the TV tax was axed and taxpayers’ money was stopped from going into pockets of ‘media millionaires’.
They pointed out these sums had been paid out despite many over-75s now having to pay for TV licences after the BBC changed the rules.
It also comes after the corporation warned of serious consequences of a two-year licence freeze and of job cuts and slashing services.
But Mr Davie said the BBC was being driven by ‘extreme hyper-inflation and competition’. He added that the ‘return’ the BBC got in terms of audience value was ‘very strong’ and the public wanted to see the ‘best people’ presenting for the corporation. He said appropriate restraint on pay was ‘critical and important’.
The BBC also warned the number of highly paid stars is set to increase in the years ahead.
And it expects to see more stars earning more than £150,000 in coming years due to ‘competitive markets for talent’.
In April, Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries published proposals for a shake-up of BBC funding that could see the end of the licence fee.
In a new white paper published yesterday, the government announced a review that is expected to dump the current 100-year-old funding method in favour of an alternative, such as a subscription model.
Ministers warned that with increasing numbers choosing not to buy a licence fee there were ‘clear challenges on the horizon to the sustainability of the licence fee’.
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