The government could extend the current BBC charter if it is not able to publish its white paper on the corporation’s future early enough, according to culture minister Lady Neville-Rolfe.
During a House of Lords debate on the BBC on Thursday, Neville-Rolfe said the government still planned to publish the paper “in the first half of the year” but charter extension beyond its expiration at the end of this year was a possibility.
The Guardian reported last week that the Department for Culture was likely to delay publication of the white paper until after the EU referendum on 23 June, having originally said it would be published in the spring. That would leave just a week to hit Neville-Rolfe’s timescale and little time for scrutiny from parliament and the public.
The BBC and the shadow culture secretary, Maria Eagle, have called on the government to publish its proposals as soon as possible.
Neville-Rolfe said: “Our intention is still to publish the white paper first half to this year, but … we can extend the current charter if we have to do so. That is not our intention.”
Neville Rolfe said the government was unlikely to give an independent regulator powers to suggest licence fee settlements, as recommended by the House of Lords communication committee report last month.
Responding to a question from Lord Best, who chaired the committee, she said: “This argued for a reform for the way the license fee settlement should be conducted and recommended it should be set by the independent regulator. This is an interesting proposal and one which will be given careful consideration. But ultimately the license fee is a tax and taxation fees are ones for ministers.”
it is unlikely that the government will move decision making powers for settling the licence fee away from ministers, now or in the future.
