Backer of voluntary subscriptions to take part in BBC licence fee review

A VETERAN broadcasting executive who has called for the licence fee to be replaced with a voluntary subscription has been called in to review the BBC’S future funding.

David Elstein, the former chief executive of Channel 5, has been appointed to a panel who will advise ministers on options to replace the licence fee.

Mr Elstein, who also worked under Rupert Murdoch as head of programming at BSKYB, is a vocal advocate for scrapping the licence fee and replacing it with a subscription model.

He has called for the public service output, including news, to be separated and funded through central taxation.

Drama and entertainment programming such as Strictly Come Dancing would then be run as a commercial service funded by subscriptions.

Mr Elstein, who led a previous review of the BBC’S funding two decades ago, has argued such a move would give the corporation more creative freedom and allow it to better compete with streaming giants such as Netflix and Amazon.

The nine-member panel includes Sir Peter Bazalgette, the former ITV chairman behind hit shows including Big

Brother and Deal or No Deal. Sir Peter has argued that the licence fee should be replaced by a “TV tax” for all households similar to the system in Germany.

This would replace the flat annual fee, which is due to increase to £169.50 next month, with a progressive tax that would mean wealthier people pay more.

Lucy Frazer, the Culture Secretary, said the new panel would assess whether the licence fee is “fit for the future” and examine alternative models. The Government launched a review of the BBC licence fee in December amid concerns that the system is unsustainable in the streaming age as viewers increasingly defect to rival services.

The panel will also consider how the BBC can increase revenues from its commercial arm, as well as how it would transition to any new funding model. Other members of the panel include Dame Frances Cairncross, who led the independent review into press sustainability in 2019.