If we don’t watch we shouldn’t pay
■ Most people are paying Sky, Now TV, Virgin etc big subscription charges, then on top paying for the TV licence for the BBC.
I do not watch a single BBC channel yet I legally have to pay for it because I own a telly.
The BBC should start advertising like the rest and stop the licence fee, or there should be a system where people can opt out of receiving BBC channels and not have to pay.
Lauren Mitchel, Merseyside
■ I am 73 and disabled – I think it’s a disgrace I have to pay my TV licence – and even more disgraceful they are increasing the fee.
The BBC should do adverts like all the other channels. Most of the year we get repeats and cookery shows anyway. I don’t watch the BBC any more, so why should I have to pay another £3 in April?
M Ridley, Tyne and Wear
■ Many people fail to see just how much they get from the BBC. They cover a range of radio stations at national, international and local level, as well as internet services such as iPlayer and their comprehensive range of websites.
We get this for about £12 a month whereas commercial satellite and cable services like Sky, Virgin and BT charge over twice this. Also these channels offer no discount for elderly viewers.
I know younger viewers are now habitual watchers of Netflix, Amazon and the like, but those services’ scope is far more limited. Terry Marriott Waterlooville, Hants
■ The BBC is simply not good enough. I feel for the poor pensioners who cannot pay the fees and do not qualify to get it free.
If they have to watch their pennies, it might be the last straw.
I can luckily afford my licence but I still begrudge paying for a service I hardly use, except for state occasions, and then if it’s on ITV I turn over.
I have Netflix, Amazon Prime and Apple TV which I much prefer. Margaret Fenton, West Yorks
■ This Tory government is right to decriminalise non-payment of TV licence fees. By doing so, however, it’s likely thousands of viewers will attempt to avoid paying.
After all, austerity has made many people poorer and it looks like austerity’s here to stay.
You have to question the motives of PM Boris Johnson’s reforms. Without support for the BBC the devious Tories will be able to act without proper scrutiny.
We are heading for an American broadcasting system, similar to PBS, which is funded by public donations so that informative programmes can be watched without the need for adverts.
It looks like chlorinated chicken will also be on the menu soon, and a privatised NHS. We are in line to become the 51st state of America. Bill Cook, Devon
■ Why is it a criminal offence if people don’t pay? The licence fee is a big scam. The BBC puts on very old B-rated movies, cookery programmes and lots of other shows that are cheap to make.
Isn’t it the directors and top talent who pocket the rest, which is often millions of pounds?
If they just had adverts, they wouldn’t be able to swindle us.
N Hardy, West Mids
■ Changing non-payment from a criminal offence to a civil offence is a con, it will just mean more bailiffs turning up at the door.
In this day and age it should be like other TV subscriptions – if you don’t pay it, you don’t watch it.
Keep it a criminal offence, for I would be more than willing to go to jail rather than see some thug turning up on my doorstep demanding to take my worldly goods away.
Graeme Dunn, Dundee