Former chairman of the BBC, Richard Sharp has caused outrage by suggesting wealthier households should pay a higher licence fee.
A change to the current £159-a-year licence fee, which funds the work of the BBC, is currently being considered by the government.
Slamming the current system of a flat fee “regressive”, Mr Sharp proposed replacing the licence fee with a tax on broadband bills or a levy based on a household’s property value.
In line with rising inflation, the licence fee is set to rise next year at the end of a two-year freeze.
Mr Sharp expressed concern in a podcast, saying that for those on lower incomes, the fee was regressive if they pay the same as wealthier households.
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After confirming he would be in favour of a mandatory payment, he added: “You can look at models around the world, there’s a broadband tax, there’s a household tax and there’s the licence fee. Change is disruptive from moving from one mechanism that works to another.”
Earlier this year, Lucy Powell, the shadow culture secretary, suggested means-testing the fee would be considered by a Labour government.
The ex-BBC boss also expressed concern women were disproportionately likely to be prosecuted for non-payment when inspectors came calling due to the way the licence fee was enforced.
It is an offence to watch live on any channel, TV service or streaming service, or use BBC iPlayer on any device, without a valid TV licence and evading the licence fee is a crime.
An estimated 1,000 are prosecuted for failing to pay their licence fee a week. Seven out of 10 of those are women.
Refusing to pay the fine for evading the TV licence fee could result in a criminal record, unlike non-payment of other civil matters such as utility bills or parking tickets.
Mr Sharp warned that eliminating criminal penalties for evading the licence fee could result in an increase of people attending civil courts for failure to pay.
He said: “The sanction itself drives behaviour. If you go to civil litigation, you actually can increase the amount of litigation that takes place. So it’s not as obvious as you think.
“As a result of people paying the licence fee, you get a common good, which is you get an incredible value for what people are actually paying on a household basis.”
