TV Licence Court Summons

brewerdave

Pincher wrote: »

The TV License is actually a really stupid tax.
They could just add it to VAT, and save god knows how much on enforcement.
.

Agreed ....they are going to come up with an alternative wheeze for raising the cash sooner rather than later -a significant minority are watching live stuff only over their internet connection - thousands of students living away logging on to relation's Sky Go extra accounts is one obvious example - no boxes,TVs ,dishes or aerials involved-just a laptop or tablet -virtually untraceable/unenforceable as far as Capita are concerned!

antrobus

Pincher wrote: »

The TV License is actually a really stupid tax.
They could just add it to VAT, and save god knows how much on enforcement....

Not possible. You can't have a VAT rate higher than standard rate.

Of course, the big flaw in your proposal, is that most people already have a TV.

brewerdave wrote: »

Agreed ....they are going to come up with an alternative wheeze for raising the cash sooner rather than later ...

Public Broadcasting Charge. Coming soon in Ireland.

Cornucopia

I wouldn't want to see it added to VAT generally, that would be substituting one regressive tax for another.

Interestingly and amazingly TV sales have reached c. 9m in recent years, making a TV sales tax just about feasible. To raise a similar amount to the Licence Fee would require an average TV sales tax of £340.

However, neither of these things addresses the more fundamental point of why we need a Publicly-funded Public Service Broadcaster at all.

wongataa

Cornucopia wrote: »

However, neither of these things addresses the more fundamental point of why we need a Publicly-funded Public Service Broadcaster at all.

To not have bias like you get from commercial channels. To make sure you have certain amounts of certain programming (to prevent wall to wall cheap lowest common denominator programming). The lack of adverts is a nice bonus as well.

Cornucopia

wongataa wrote: »

To not have bias like you get from commercial channels.

You think that the BBC is less biased than the commercial channels? Any examples?

To make sure you have certain amounts of certain programming (to prevent wall to wall cheap lowest common denominator programming).

I think BBC daytime could be described as the very epitome of wall-to-wall cheap, LCD programming. I give them credit for the mid-afternoon dramas, though.

The lack of adverts is a nice bonus as well.

I've got a free sub to Now TV at the moment. No ads on the on-demand content. Netflix & Amazon the same. If the market wants ad-free, someone will provide it.

Pincher

The CAM slot adds to the cost of the TV, and god knows how many of them are ever used. It's the appendix of the TV industry. Why don't we make it actually useful?


Essentially, you have to plug in a valid/paid for card to view tuner received material.


Remember the V-chip? Parents can just take out the card, and the kiddies suffer withdrawal symptoms, and will do housework to get a fix.


They can give disabled people who are housebound a discount or just make it free.


You pay, you watch. No need to enforce anything.

anotheruser

Swipe wrote: »

Let's be clear on this and let this be a warning to others... He was not a TV inspector but rather a salesman...

You may say a "salesman" but inspector is more close to what his job entails.
Your disrespect for someone who, by the sounds of it, was fairly nice and just trying to make a living, is quite frankly awful.
Some inspectors may be horrible, but then applying that logic, all bus drivers are perverts and all men over 70 are kiddie fiddlers...

You can't tar everyone with the same brush. They are only trying to make a living with a job they probably hate. Pity them, but don't mock them.

Cornucopia

Being an "inspector" is not just about a job title (not that that is their job title), but also about the authority legally granted to them.

In terms of TVL staff, that authority in their day-to-day work is nil, and therefore "salesman" or "nuisance" seem appropriate terms.

I'm all for politeness, but presumably TVL salespeople know before they set foot on the premises that they are there without legal powers, and that their presence is likely to be unwelcome.

One has to question whether they are either peculiarly bloody-minded individuals, or they have been lied to in terms of the desirability (or worse, the authority) of their role.

edit:

Furthermore, their entire approach (both the door-steppers and the actions undertaken centrally) is inconsistent with their lack of legal powers. Given that they have chosen (or been deceived) to act in this way, I think that every interaction with them should be treated with a degree of justified harshness.

We should exercise Zero Tolerance to organisations exceeding their authority.

Dunpony

I had fun with someone come to my door for a tv license. I answered yes or no to every question until the penultimate one (10 mins later) was 'do you own a tv' 'no' 'Can I come in to check?' 'no' He then just went away! Everything stayed very polite - and no I didn't have a tv.

brewerdave

antrobus wrote: »

Public Broadcasting Charge. Coming soon in Ireland.

As I understand this has been "deferred" - they intend to discuss it further (possibly) in 2016 :rotfl: