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Under recent months, the BBC has come under fire for scrapping the free TV licences for most over-75s and the Defund The BBC campaign group has gained momentum.

And now, former MEP Rupert Lowe has said it is “no surprise” support for the long-running organisation is falling.

He tweeted: “No surprise to see support for the BBC falling with older people as the BBC desperately tries to appeal to the woke crowd.

“What made me laugh is that support is falling with younger people too.

“It’s a failing organisation – time to we stopped paying for it.”

Mr Lowe’s comments come after the broadcasting watchdog Ofcom revealed satisfaction with the BBC is showing “signs of waning”.

The Ofcom report found: “For the first time, satisfaction levels among audiences who typically use the BBC the most… are beginning to show signs of waning.

“Older audiences in particular are starting to show signs of decreasing satisfaction.

“Average time spent with the BBC each week [by young audiences] now stands at just less than an hour a day.”

The report found the proportion of over-55s with a “positive impression” of the BBC fell from 64 percent in 2018 to 62 percent.

Younger audiences, the report found, are more likely to use BBC iPlayer rather than traditional TV.

While the report said the BBC’s reach is “still very high”, overall audiences are “in gradual decline”.

It said: “If audiences do not consider the BBC a core part of their viewing, they may not see value in the licence fee.

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“We’re committed to delivering great value and meeting the challenges of a fast-changing media landscape.”

Only 69 percent of Radio 2 listeners now believe it “offers something that other radio stations do not”, down from 75 percent a year ago.

Overall, 87 percent of the population now use BBC services, which is down from 92 percent three years ago.

Vikki Cook, Ofcom’s director of broadcasting policy, said: “The BBC faces the challenge of serving all its audiences, whatever their age, background, location.

“Tim Davie [the director-general] has been pretty clear since he took over that the BBC doesn’t deliver to all audiences equally, and our research has corroborated that.”

Earlier this month, BBC boosts were warned millions of Britons aged 75 and over are refusing to pay for the annual TV licence fee after they backtracked on a deal to offer free TV access.

The decision to scrap the free licence sparked the outrage of BBC users, with the group Defund the BBC emerging in a bid to make the payment of the licence fee voluntary.

Group member Calvin Robinson warned the corporation elderly Britons are ready to stop paying for TV access after years of underrepresentation.

Speaking to talkRADIO, Mr Robinson said: “We hear from so many over- 75s saying, ‘actually, we’ve had enough.’

“The BBC promised they would keep this licence free for us, they’ve gone back on their promise, it’s the final straw.

“They’re not willing to pay anymore and I think that’s fantastic, people are standing up and voting with their wallet they’re saying no.

“The BBC has underrepresented us for too long, why should we pay them for this?”

Claims the BBC has “underrepresented” the public was reinforced by Rebecca Ryan, campaign director for Defund The BBC.

Ms Ryan told Express.co.uk: “The views of the majority of the country, and not just people who voted Brexit but people who voted the other side, spent the last four years having to listen to themselves being portrayed as racists, thick and backwards.

“All these kind of things by the very organisation they are forced to pay for with dear of imprisonment.

“There is a huge sense of injustice that people are feeling across the country.”

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