BBC director general Tim Davie has told an audience in MediaCity that he believes the era of the licence fee is not over as the broadcaster looks ahead to its charter renewal in 2027 with widespread calls, particularly among the right-leaning media, to end the publicly funded model at one of their biggest competitors.
Davie said during a speech to industry and community leaders in Salford: “I think a universal payment is not over. The reason I’m not, and I hope I’m not giving you a politician’s answer, because what it’s called, I think, is slightly secondary. The thing is, do we want a universal fee? Just to be clear, the current license fee works and is delivering for this organisation and the content. I think it’s a very good system, but we are saying that based on changes in audience behaviour and these huge changes in the world, the system should be reformed and should be modernized. But what we do want is a way in which everyone pays for the BBC fairly, and that is, you know, absolutely what we’re hunting for.”
Davie also insisted that his defence of the public funding model was not simply a case of defending tradition: “The BBC is ready to play its full part – not simply defending tradition, but shaping the future,” he said. “A future where trusted information strengthens democracy, where every child has a fair start, where creativity fuels growth and social capital, and where no-one is left behind in the digital age.”
READ MORE: BBC chief Tim Davie tells Salford audience “democratic society at risk” from social media and misinformation
Davie was also pressed (ironically by a BBC reporter, which somewhat backed up his earlier claims about defending press freedom) about the latest social media storm surrounding outgoing Match of the Day host Gary Lineker. Lineker, the BBC’s highest paid presenter again last year and no stranger to social media storms, walked into a new crisis yesterday when he posted a Tweet about Zionism, illustrated by the traditionally anti-semitic symbol of a rat.
Lineker was previously suspended by the BBC after a post comparing the former Conservative government’s language around immigration to Nazi Germany.
Although Davie was asked directly about Lineker, he diplomatically declined to name names, responding: “When it comes to presenters, I’ll just say that, you know, the BBC reputation is held by everyone, and when someone makes a mistake, it costs us, and I think we absolutely need people to be exemplars of the BBC values and follow our social media policy. Simple as that.”
