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Electronic Communications

I beg to move,"That the Communications (Television Licensing) (Amendment) Regulations 2009 (S.I., 2009, No. 505), dated 26 February 2009, a copy of which was laid before this House on 9 March, be revoked." It is a pleasure to be supported by so many staunch supporters of the BBC on the Conservative Benches. The Communications (Television Licensing) (Amendment) Regulations 2009 came into force on 1 April. They increase the cost of a black and white television licence by £1 to £48, which may or may not trouble the hon. Member for Sunderland, North (Bill Etherington) who, we learned today, has had the same black and white television for 31 years, to his credit. The regulations increase the price of a colour TV licence from £139.50 to £142.50. Why have we called this debate over a £3 increase in the licence fee? We have done so partly because of the MP expenses issue that has engulfed the House over the past two weeks. It has shown that the public are justifiably angry about the misuse of their money, whether in small sums or large, which has reminded the House to respect the taxpayers who pay our salaries. The same surely applies to all publicly funded organisations, including the BBC. We have called for the debate also partly because the economic situation has changed beyond recognition since January 2007, when the current licence fee settlement was made. With 2.2 million people unemployed and many people facing dire personal financial circumstances, it is surely right to ask whether an increase that may have seemed reasonable in 2007 is still justified. We should also put the rise in context. In 1997, the licence fee was £91.50. Since then, it has increased by 56 per cent.—almost double the retail prices index rate of inflation. When the BBC's commercial rivals are struggling, sometimes for their very existence, licence fee payers have been treating the BBC incredibly generously.