Standing behind a desk at Highbury Corner Magistrates’ Court in north London, Kwabena Bonsu looks stunned. He has just been convicted of a crime he insists he did not commit.
The offence? Not paying for a TV licence.
The 42-year-old unemployed father maintains it’s all a misunderstanding. He claims to only watch Netflix and YouTube, meaning he has no need for a licence because he doesn’t watch “live” TV.
Cases like this could become more common. Facing a funding crisis, the BBC wants the licence fee expanded, which may mean people would also have to pay the £180 annual charge to watch streaming services. That would simplify the complicated rules that have ensnared Bonsu – but would increase bills for millions of households and could lead to more prosecutions.
Some campaigners argue that licence fee evasion shouldn’t be a crime or believe the charge should be abolished altogether, saying that court enforcement is a waste of public resources and isn’t proportionate. Others defend the fee as the best way of funding the BBC’s public broadcasting without compromising its independence.
