Should people be prosecuted for not paying the BBC licence fee? This is what you told us

The TV licence is the BBC's main funding source, providing around £3.7 billion of its £5 billion annual income.

The rules are as follows - if you watch or record live TV programmes on any channel, you must pay for a TV licence.

Those who don't cough up the £169.50-a-year-fee could face prosecution, with a maximum £1,000 fine plus any legal costs or compensation.

It comes as the BBC looks to broker a new funding deal with the government in the next three years. Critics of the current licence fee model argue that those who do not pay it should not face criminal prosecution.

In our comments section, it was clear that the majority of our readers thought TV licences should be completely scrapped.

Here are some of the answers to the question: Should people be prosecuted for not paying the BBC licence fee?

Andy Carlton said he has no interest in the type of shows aired these days, and paying for a licence isn't worth it.

"No - Never had one and never will," he wrote. "Most of the BBC is either sports, cookery or politics with most news being foreign. There is very very little that interests me on BBC TV (and radio)."

Janet Horton agreed, saying she prefers tuning into other channels and streaming services that are worth her money.

"I don't even watch it, because since they took Holby City and Casualty off there's nothing I want to see. I tend to stick to ITV, ITVX, Netflix, and Now TV. I don't know if I should even bother with a licence."

Viewers need a licence if they use BBC iPlayer, even if it isn't live TV. But they don't need one if they're watching catch-up using streaming services like Netflix, Amazon, ITVX, All 4 or My5 - unless they are using those services to watch live TV.

This caveat means some viewers are left wondering how the rules will be applied if other streaming services begin showing live content and how easy it would be to prove or disprove you've not been watching live content on streaming services.

Others argued that it's about time the law was abolished.

Malcolm Kemp said: "Long overdue. Make everybody's year and get this RIDICULOUS rip off licence abolished. Never watch and also disagree as the staff are well overpriced as the licence payments are being wasted on them."

Les Short thinks there are other ways for the BBC to make more money and it was time to change up the system.

He wrote: "It's "Never" been good value and "Never" will, it should be scrapped and be either pay per view or quite simply show adverts the same as every other channel, it's not rocket science."

Brian Hunt agreed: "It's a rip off, if Netflix, Amazon and Disney can manage with subscriptions or ads then so can this corrupt company. Get rid of licence fees now."

Kaysha Birch thinks it's old news.

"How many times has this question been asked?" she wrote. "How many different ways can the public say no, this is not value for money and should be scrapped."

Jakob Charlesworth had a different take, saying that if the broadcaster brought back the shows that people new and loved, things might be different – one show in particular.

"The BBC really needs to stop doing games shows," he wrote. "They need to start believing in the shows they create instead of just axing it. They need to bring back sitcoms with a live audience instead of those drama type style ones. They need to up the episode count on Doctor Who."

With viewer habits changing and cost of living pressures rising, the broadcaster is facing stark challenges ahead.

Half a million households cancelled their BBC licence fee last year, and estimated 'evasion rates' - that is, people who are watching live TV without a licence - rose from 5.5 per cent in 2012/13 to 10.3 per cent in 2022/23.

Other readers agreed that if the broadcaster was 'less biased' then they would give it a chance.

Emma Stanley wrote: "I haven't bought one in years. I don't watch or stream anything live and I certainly don't watch BBC, iPlayer, or listen to any of their radio shows. Can't stand them and their woke, biased reporting."

And finally, Leanne Marie Gough said what's on all our minds.

"Why should I have to pay to watch a TV that I bought and power with my electricity?"