Thank you Fran, Happy New Year to you as well Thanks, 2015 was an eventful year so I hope 2016 is less eventful. Though fat chance of that. Haha. But I hope you have a great New Year too.
Beefy you and I are in agreement that poverty in this country is a serious matter which needs to be urgently addressed but I cannot agree with you over access to the BBC. There are free newspapers and papers you have to pay for just because I get a free newspaper through my letter box doesn't mean I can go down the road and help myself to the Times for free as well. If I took a copy of the Times (value £1) without paying I would end up in a criminal court.
But the Times doesn't block you from getting the free papers, were as the BBC stops people viewing the free channels.
Don't think I'll change your mind on this one. However it's worth pointing out the license is not a subscription for, or managed by, the BBC. It's to install and recieve all tv broadcasts in the UK, for any channel or service. The BBC is funded by government, with any increase in that funding often (indirectly) resulting in a license increase. There are of course many agendas surrounding the whole issue, you've identified a few, but in the end successive governments have reviewed and continued with the model. As that Churchill bloke was rumored to say about democracy, it's the worst option except for all the others.
The TV licence fee is a tax [6] collected by the BBC and primarily used to fund the radio, television and online services of the BBC itself. This type of tax (ie. one raised for a particular defined purpose) is known as a hypothecated tax.[7] Licence Fee collection is the responsibility of the BBC's Finance and Business division.[8] please log in to view this image The BBC is the TV Licensing Authority in the UK Although the money is raised for its own use, the BBC does not directly use the collected fees. The money received is first paid into the Government's Consolidated Fund. It is subsequently included in the 'vote' for the Department of Culture, Media and Sport in that year's Appropriation Act, and passed back to the BBC for the running of the BBC's own services (free from commercial advertisements). It still very much funds the BBC. I have said countless times the government are even worse then the BBC. It is the BBC that keeps not paying the fee a criminal offence. It's why I suggested making the BBC subscription based. So at least the very poor can get to see ITV etc.
That is a good point but I also think that sometimes the licence fee is used to subsidise the private broadcasters. The main issue with the current system is loads of money is wasted on threatening people about television licences when it is not necessary due to poor records (apparently you are obliged to inform them you don't have one as opposed to only applying for one if you need it, which is crazy!) and also the fact that the government now decides how the money is spent. This allows them to purport their own agenda - just look at the funding that has suddenly been directed into the World Service to help with the Western propaganda is Asia.
Why is it that when a fuse goes, you buy a pack of 4-6. But when the next fuse goes, the part used pack is no where to be seen.
The BBC is backing a new system of funding that would see all households pay a levy, replacing the current licence fee which only targets homes that watch live TV. http://www.theguardian.com/media/2015/sep/07/bbc-licence-fee-universal-levy This article basic sums up the BBC. So poor people will have to pay even if they don't have a tv. Last I post on it. (I mean it this time)
You have my sympathies Fran. Think of those poor people in Cumbria. It might make the search for those fuses slightly less bothersome. On the other hand, I left my Galaxy S2 at a friend's house last night, and it took a wee bit of adjustment [and admittedly a little more alcohol consumption than necessary] to stop me caring for 24 hours.
I agree. People do like to scaremonger about the "end of the BBC". No one's saying end it, all they're saying is turn it into a subscription based system. If the BBC is as good as BBC lovers make it out to be (and I do think the BBC is good, apart from the **** situation comedies they make), then people will pay the subscription fee to get it. People shouldn't be jailed/forced to pay for something they don't watch.
That's not how society works though, is it? People with BUPA subscriptions still have a proportion of their tax spent on the NHS, taxpayers with no children still contribute money to state schools, as do people who pay for their children to go to a private school. You can't reclaim the part of your taxes that's spent on the Natural History Museum if you've never been there and never will. TV licencing isn't a uniquely British thing either. So far as I can see, most European countries have some kind of licence fee and those that don't fund their national broadcasters through taxation so you pay for it whether you use it or not. On the question of enforcement, I don't have much sympathy for those who can't afford the licence fee and end up in court. The system isn't perfect but the rules are clear and each person who ends up in court will have had ample opportunity to take responsibility and either get a licence or get rid of their TV. If you can't afford the licence then don't have a TV. A TV is a convenience not an essential part of life. What else can you do? Listen to the radio, buy a pack of cards, join the local library. There are lots of things to do in life that aren't watching TV and, as others have said, not having the option to slump in front of the TV all day might be good for some people. As for making it a civil offence rather than a criminal one, be careful what you wish for. The criminal record thing is pretty insignificant and civil enforcement can be tough too. This wouldn't operate like gas or electric companies - you can't cut off a TV signal until the person pays. I suspect it would be more like parking tickets. The BBC would send out some notices and if they were ignored they'd register the debt at court and send in the bailiffs.
I got a steam voucher for Christmas, has anyone got any recommendations for any good games on Steam? I've got about £16 left after buying Crypt of the NecroDancer and Running With Guns (which is a pretty crazy game). I'd rather buy a few cheap games, rather than one relatively expensive games (though I must say Verdun at £11 is quite tempting), also my laptop isn't the best specs-wise
Just a thought......if you had an iPad or android tablet or phone and had the catchup TV app installed, would u have to pay for a licence then? I mean if the authorities came round to look for a TV .....u could very easily put the device under a cushion or newspaper for example. The only problem I can see is that you would need either wifi or 3/4 g....pensioners probably wouldn't have either but the younger generation probably would.