Pollster Find Out Now and election experts Electoral Calculus have run a poll on attitudes to the BBC Licence Fee, The poll involved 2,488 respondents and was carried out from 18-20 January 2022.
The poll asked GB residents various questions about the BBC Licence Fee, whether it is good or bad value, what a fair price would be, and whether it should be replaced with a subscription-style approach.
In summary:
Here are the questions in detail.
| Response | Percentage of respondents |
|---|---|
| Very bad value | 49% |
| Not enough value | 22% |
| About right | 11% |
| Good value | 6% |
| Very good value | 8% |
| Prefer not to say | 4% |
Nearly half of all respondents think the BBC licence fee is very bad value, and 71% think it is "very bad" or "not enough" value.
Of those who answered "Very bad value":
Of those who answered "Very good value":
Respondents were asked to enter their own numerical figure. We have displayed the results grouping values together in contiguous ranges.
| Response | Percentage of respondents |
|---|---|
| £0 | 38% |
| £1-£50 | 8% |
| £51-£100 | 19% |
| £101-£150 | 16% |
| £151+ | 19% |
Over a third of respondents think the TV Licence fee should be zero, and well over half think it should be no more than £100. Fewer than one person in every five thinks it should be above £150.
The average value over all respondents was £63.
Respondents were allowed to enter their own numerical figure. We have displayed the results grouping values together in contiguous ranges.
| Response | Percentage of respondents |
|---|---|
| £0 | 30% |
| £1-£50 | 18% |
| £51-£100 | 22% |
| £101-£150 | 13% |
| £151+ | 17% |
The responses to this question are similar to those of question 2. Three in ten respondents would personally pay nothing for their TV Licence fee, and seven in every ten would personally pay no more than £100. Fewer than one person in every five thinks would be happy to pay more than £150.
The average over all respondents was £61.
| Response | Percentage of respondents |
|---|---|
| Disagree strongly | 13% |
| Disagree somewhat | 10% |
| Neither agree nor disagree | 11% |
| Agree somewhat | 21% |
| Agree strongly | 42% |
| Prefer not to say | 2% |
| Total disagree | 23% |
| Total agree | 63% |
Around one person in every four disagrees and thinks the licence fee should be retained. But more than 3 people in every 5 think the licence fee should be abolished and replaced with a subscription-style opt-in system.
Breaking the results down by political party support in 2019, 65% of Conservative voters want to abolish the licence fee, as do 54% of Labour voters, but only 41% of Liberal Democrat voters agree. Possibly for different reasons, 76% of SNP voters also agree.
Chris Holbrook, CEO of Find Out Now: "These questions are not new, and some may question the timing, but familiarity with streaming subscriptions and suspicions of a so-called 'Woke agenda' may have pushed the BBC licence fee debate beyond a tipping point."
Martin Baxter, CEO of Electoral Calculus: "The public thinks the TV Licence is too high and is bad value for money. Most people would prefer a subscription-style arrangement instead of the current licence fee."
Find Out Now polled 2,488 GB adults online between 18-20 January 2022. The sample was weighted to be representative by gender, age, social grade, other demographics and past voting patterns. Find Out Now and Electoral Calculus are both members of the British Polling Council and abide by its rules.
Data tables are available here.