Parliamentary report calls on BBC licence fee split

A portion of the BBC’s licence fee should go to the corporation’s rivals to allow them to create more public service content, such as current affairs and regional news programming, according to a parliamentary report.

The House of Lords Communication Committee said that an element of “contestable funding” should be created for broadcasters and programme makers who are willing to produce PSB content.

“Consideration may ultimately need to be given to redirecting an element of the licence fee to support public service content provision outside the BBC,” the report said.

The committee also said that it does not see a case for Channel 4 merging with the BBC’s commercial arm, BBC Worldwide, as a means to plug its £150 million funding shortfall, as suggested in Lord Carter’s interim Digital Britain report.

“Although we believe that the BBC must make a substantial contribution to tackling the general problems of public service broadcasting, that does not necessarily mean a merger between BBC Worldwide and Channel 4,” the report said. “We believe that it would be wise for the government to look at other options.”

The BBC, which is funded by the guaranteed £3.4 billion fees paid by all households with televisions in the UK, has said it is willing to form partnerships with commercial broadcasters, such as Channel 4 and ITV, in a bid to ensure the future of PSB content.