Rising cost of listening (and viewing) (From York Press)

Rising cost of listening (and viewing)

9:39am Wednesday 17th March 2010 in

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Keith Chapman wrote recently (Back to black, Letters, March 15) regarding the increase in the TV licence.

He suggested that maybe to cut down on the cost we could go back to good old-fashioned black-and-white TV, which would be cheaper, or maybe even listening to the radio.

Well Mr Chapman, I have news for you.

It won't be long before your FM radio programmes are not available to you either, not unless you invest in buying a new digital radio.

The Government has sold off the FM frequencies for mobile phone use, so in 2015 we all have to buy new radios. Sorry, they have got you every way you look.

Oh, by the way, your phone line will be taxed at £6 per year, which is only 50 pence a month.

So whatever you do the Government will get its pound of flesh.

Stuart Wilson, Vesper Drive, Acomb, York.

• I think the TV licence is good value. I pay monthly by direct debit, and it is something we should not criticise but cherish.

David Cameron and Rupert Murdoch have made it clear through their “mouthpiece”, ex-Sun editor Kelvin MacKenzie, that it will be worth even less if they have their way.

Mr Murdoch is once again trying to control the country through his media empire, and he made it clear last month, through MacKenzie, that he would sell off everything except BBC One and BBC Two and Radio 4, just when Mr Cameron’s party talked about downsizing the BBC.

It is clear he wants more people to pay his outrageous fees of £35 per month, or more, to watch anything but the “bog standard”, and it is something that as a public we must clearly stand up against.

I like BBC Three and Four, as they have interesting documentaries and dramas, which have included the excellent French law series Spiral. I am a Radio 1 fan; I don’t want to listen to adverts. Many others enjoy Radio 2, again because they do not want to hear adverts.

Finally, the joys of BBC iPlayer, so you can catch up on the programmes missed when at meetings – note that television Channels 4 and 5 provide catch-up services for free, but Mr Murdoch wants us to pay for it. So let’s protect our TV from Mr Murdoch, back the licence and say no to being charged twice.

Coun Tracey Simpson-Laing, Salisbury Road, York.