Wednesday 20 May 2009

License This

David Cameron’s proposed freeze is all very well. But if the BBC really wants to save the license fee, then that fee should be made optional, with as many adults as wished to pay it at any given address free to do so, including those who did not own a television set but who greatly valued, for example, Radio Four.

The Trustees would then be elected by and from among the license-payers. Candidates would have to be sufficiently independent to qualify in principle for the remuneration panels of their local authorities. Each license-payer would vote for one, with the top two elected.

The electoral areas would be Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, and each of the nine English regions. The Chairman would be appointed by the relevant Secretary of State, with the approval of the relevant Select Committee. And the term of office would be four years.

At the same time, we need to ban any person or other interest from owning or controlling more than one national daily newspaper. To ban any person or other interest from owning or controlling more than one national weekly newspaper. To ban any person or other interest from owning or controlling more than one television station. To re-regionalise ITV under a combination of municipal and mutual ownership. And to apply that same model (but with central government replacing local government, subject to very strict parliamentary scrutiny) to Channel Four.

2 comments:

  1. Please try to remember that the "English regions" are in no way a legitimate done deal.

    As I understand it the only people who have voted in favour of a devolved region in England are those in London.

    The people of the so called "North east" region completely rejected the idea.

    The nation of England outside of London has had regionalism foisted upon it and the regions remain deeply unpopular.

    Do you agree that the English regions need to be put to the vote? Along side an option for an English Parliament?

    ReplyDelete
  2. That was just the Regional Assembly. The regions themselves have existed for various administrative purposes for donkey's years. They were set up by the Tories.

    ReplyDelete