Plans set out to reform licence fee in BBC royal charter review

THE UK Government will look at reforming the licence fee and consider more commercial revenue options for the BBC in plans outlined in its royal charter review.

- HANNAH ROBERTS

It comes amid disruption at the BBC following resignations from top executives and a lawsuit from US president Donald Trump.

The US president is seeking up to $10bn (£7.5bn) in damages in response to the editing of a speech he made before the 2021 attack on the Capitol that was featured in a Panorama episode.

The charter sets out the BBC's public purpose and is the constitutional basis for the corporation, which is predominately funded through the licence fee, paid by UK TV-watching households.

Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy has published a Green Paper, setting out potential reforms of the BBC, which "consults on a wide range of options being considered for the future of the BBC", the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) said.

The UK Government will look at whether licence-fee concessions should be updated, options for the BBC to generate more commercial revenues, and options for funding the World Service to support sustainable funding for minority-language broadcasting.