BBC Wales employees hold 'separatist' views claims Davies

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Only those eligible for pension credit are exempt, with all other over-75s now having to buy a licence. Over-75s previously had TV licences paid for by the Government until 2015, when responsibility was handed to the BBC.

Last year the corporation announced it was ending free licences, in a bid to raise money.

However a transition period was set up during the pandemic to allow pensioners time to adjust to the new system.

This ends on Saturday, after which anyone caught watching live TV without a licence could face a fine.

According to the BBC, nine out of ten of those aged over-75 have already paid for a licence or are eligible for a free one.

However this still leaves around 260,000 people who have yet to make the payment.

Currently it costs £159 for a colour TV licence, or £53.50 for a black and white one.

It is illegal to watch live television anywhere in the UK unless you pay for a licence, which funds the BBC.

According to the Daily Star the BBC has gained an extra £250 million, by dumping free licences for most over-75s.

In return for licence fee funding, the BBC is required to be politically impartial.

It’s guidelines state: “The BBC is committed to achieving due impartiality in all its output.

“This commitment is fundamental to our reputation, our values and the trust of audiences.”

In 2020 the ‘Defund the BBC’ campaign launched demanding non-payment of the licence fee be decriminalised.

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The group has attracted over 100,000 Twitter followers and 33,000 Facebook likes.

TV Licensing, which is responsible for providing television licences, insist they can track down those who watch live without paying.

Their website states: “We have a database of approximately 31 million licensed and unlicensed addresses. This tells us if your address has a TV Licence.

“All our visiting officers have access to this database. This means they can check if you have a licence or not.

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“If you tell us that you do not need a TV Licence, our officers may still visit you to confirm this.

“We also have a fleet of detector vans that can detect the use of TV receiving equipment at specifically targeted addresses within minutes.”

Following the 2019 general election then BBC director-general Tony Hall hit out at bias claims against the corporation, stating complaints come from across the political spectrum.

Writing in the Daily Telegraph he said: “Around 27 million people in the UK came to the BBC website to find out about the election results.

“It was a reminder of the trust people place in the BBC.

“But the fact criticism came from all sides of the political divide shows to me that we were doing our job without fear or favour.”
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