This petition was submitted during the 2019-2024 parliament
Petition Privatise the BBC and make them self-funding
The BBC is no longer justified to be funded by the use of a compulsory Licence. They are no longer a state broadcaster, and should be sold to the highest bidder have to be self-funded.
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The BBC has no place in the modern society as it is now. It needs to be a commercial provider giving the user the choice of what they watch or listen to and what they pay for.
This petition is closed This petition ran for 6 months
Government responded
This response was given on 26 January 2021
The government has committed to maintaining the BBC funding model until 2027. The BBC plays a central role in providing trusted and reliable news and distinctive content for all UK audiences.
Read the response in full
The Royal Charter is the constitutional basis for the BBC which guarantees the BBC’s existence and independence, and provides the framework for how the BBC is governed and funded. The Charter sets the BBC’s Mission and Public Purposes which set out what the BBC’s responsibilities are and what it must do. The licence fee model contained in the Charter provides the funding for the BBC.
The current Charter was agreed between the BBC and the government in 2017, and lasts to the end of 2027. At the time the government consulted widely on the BBC and how it should be funded, and found support for both the corporation and for the current licence fee model.
As a result, the government will maintain the current BBC funding model until 2027. The government believes there is still a strong and enduring rationale for the BBC continuing as the nation's broadcaster. The BBC, as part of a wider public service broadcasting system, plays an important role in providing distinctive content for all UK audiences.
Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport