Recommendation 10

It took the Government almost 10 months to respond to the consultation on decriminalisation of TV licence fee evasion. Delays of this nature by DCMS in reforming other areas of broadcasting, such as prominence, would be of significant concern. Of more concern was that the long-delayed response simply provided further uncertainty. The issue of decriminalisation could be used as a bargaining tool by the Government during the ongoing licence fee settlement negotiations with the BBC and S4C, and thereby undermine one of the core principles of public service broadcasting: that it should be removed from Government interference. We call on the Government to provide assurances that the issue of decriminalisation will not be used as a bargaining tool during the ongoing licence fee settlement negotiations with the BBC and S4C. We also recommend that the Government conclude its further work on enforcement schemes, and publish its findings, by the end of the current parliamentary session.