I balanced my 15-month old baby on my hip, while holding three shopping bags and unlocking the door with my spare hand.
As we stepped into the house and out of the rain, I saw the now-familiar envelope on the mat – it said ‘local investigation active’ in bold text, followed by the date.
It wasn’t my first correspondence from the TV Licensing Authority and it probably won’t be my last. I’m a single mum and can’t recall the last time I even found the time to watch a television show, so it’s extremely rare I actually remember to pay the licence fee on time as I don’t need to.
Over the years, I’ve seen hilarious letters including the one – addressed to Mr A. Cow – that’s been making a regular appearance at my family’s dairy for over two decades now. The previous farmer had become so irritated with explaining that the cows don’t have a TV set that he wrote to the authorities and signed it on behalf of his cattle.
But the ominous letter delivered to my house in an envelope printed with ‘you have 10 days to pay your TV licence to avoid prosecution’ was far from funny. My current account was overdrawn simply from paying the household bills.
There wasn’t even a television set in the house, but the correspondence mentioned mobile phones, laptops, iPads and all kinds of other devices, none of which we’d ever used to watch a TV show.
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Though I ditched the letter in the bin and hoped for the best, I felt surprisingly emotional at the intrusion to my day. I couldn’t afford a television, yet someone at this government agency clearly had the audacity to assume everyone has the finances to watch the Apprentice or EastEnders. The whole situation felt unjust and I was fed up.
And despite the enduring stereotype, single mums don’t sit at home watching TV in their pajamas all day.
So when the Culture Secretary, Nadine Dorries, unexpectedly suggested that the BBC licence fee could be abolished by 2027, I was not even a tiny bit sad. In fact, I was rather pleased that the poorest people in our society won’t have to find the cash to settle the bill or risk prosecution.
I’m not denying that there are some benefits of having a state-funded broadcasting service whether it’s in the form of impartial news, helpful educational resources or interesting TV shows.
But if Netflix can offer a huge variety of programmes for £5.99 a month, why are we still paying £13.15 – which is more than double – for the BBC?
And there’s the fact that the TV licence criminalises vulnerable people for poverty and debt, while also perpetuating some of the structural inequalities already present in the UK. A total of 74% of the individuals convicted of evading the fee in 2019 were women. This offence accounts for 30% of all female prosecutions compared to just 4% of male prosecutions.
The high proportion of women convicted of this offence is partly due to the fact that as of 2019, 45% of single parents – the majority of whom are female – live in poverty across the UK.
If prosecuted, the maximum penalty is a £1,000 fine, plus any legal costs or compensation.
Whatever your views on the BBC, it’s simple maths that the TV Licence is a bigger burden for people living in poverty. How can it be acceptable that a single mum who may not have a job has to pay the same amount as an investment banker who rakes in millions?
Many of my family and friends have barely switched the central heating on this winter, due to fears over rising energy bills.
Just today we have seen that the cost of living has risen to 5.4%.
An extra £159 would probably cover the cost of at least four weeks of proper warmth during the coldest months of the year. Only yesterday, I had an extra half an hour to spare before bed, but opted for an early night as it was so cold downstairs.
By removing the £159 annual TV licence fee, the British Government would give citizens the freedom to decide how to spend their own hard-earned cash.
Thankfully, I know that I have nothing to fear from these letters as I simply don’t have time to watch any TV with the hectic pace of my life – but for others, the feeling of dread that accompanies this post delivery could send them into a spiral.
We now live in an information society with 24-hour news; an abundance of streaming services and countless podcasts. So let’s do the fairest thing and reduce the pressure on the poorest in Britain by ending the television licence fee.
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