The BBC has declared a record income of £5.33 billion ($6.4 billion) for the 2021/2022 period, and a surplus of £206 billion.
The bulk of the income was from the license fee paid for by the public, which accounted for £3.8 billion, £50 million up from last year. The licence fee has been frozen for two years as revealed earlier this year. BBC chair Richard Sharp termed this as “disappointing.”
“The working assumption is that this will open up an income gap, which is modelled to be at least £285 million a year by 2027-2028. Clearly, this is disappointing,” Sharp told a media briefing. “However, the BBC recognises that the licence fee is a privilege, and that the funding settlement offers certainty against which we can plan.”
Addressing the future funding model of the BBC, Sharp said, “The government is planning to launch a review into the BBC’s funding model. And from the board’s point of view, we welcome an informed debate. We believe all options should be looked at, and nothing should be off the table. We’ll also make our own contribution of course, by setting out the key principles against which we believe options for future funding models should be assessed in order to support the BBC, as a national and as a global asset.”
Operating costs have increased from last year but the BBC attributes this to a strong year of content delivery and commercial growth.
More to come.
