Gov’t reveals six-year license fee freeze
The Government has announced that the BBC TV licence fee will be frozen for six years ahead of chancellor George Osborne’s Comprehensive Spending Review later today (20 October).
The BBC has revealed the agreed to take on additional commitments and spend 25% less on its website as part of the government’s austerity efforts to reduce the deficit.
The licence fee will be held at £145.50 until 2017 – the longest it has be frozen since the 1950s.
The corporation will now fund the World Service, which is currently funded by the Foreign Office, and Welsh language station S4C.
It will also pay £150m towards the expansion of superfast broadband services.
The Chancellor, George Osborne will reveal the full Government spending review at midday today.
Measures are expected to result in 500,000 public sector jobs being cut, as inadvertently revealed by Danny Alexander, chief secretary to the Treasury who was photographed reading the confidential report yesterday (19 October).
Incapacity benefit, child benefit and housing benefit are all expected to be affected with deep cuts across all Government departments.
On Monday, (18 October) 35 business leaders including marks & Spencer chairman Sir Stuart Rose wrote an open letter to The Telegraph in support of the Government’s impending spending cuts but others, including Shadow Chancellor Alan Johnson have criticised the drastic measures.
