Two of the unions representing staff at the BBC, BECTU and the NUJ, have called for the scrapping of the free TV licence for over-75’s to be reversed.
At the annual Trade Unions Congress in Brighton, the two major unions representing staff members at the BBC passed a motion demanding that the decision to scrap free the TV Licence for the over-75’s should be reversed along with two other proposals.
The Bectu sector of Prospect motion also said that the BBC needs a sustainable funding model to maintain high quality programming and its political independence must be maintained in the future.
Gavin Moffitt from the Bectu sector of Prospect said: “Prospect’s position is that the BBC is a cornerstone of the UK’s public service broadcasting system and needs adequate funding to continue providing a unique mix of programming, without advertising, aimed at the broad range of interests among the UK audience.
“Prospect supports the continuation of free TV licences for all pensioners over the age of 75, but we believe the cost of this should revert to government, since the burden of the concession cannot be carried by the BBC without significant reductions in the services it provides.
“And the reality is that any reduction of services would inevitably mean job losses within the BBC, not for the highly-paid on air talent who will still be employed, but for ordinary union members like you and me.”