BBC licence fee: Fee will rise by £10.50 to £169.50 from April, as uplift based on CPI rate of inflation

The BBC licence fee will rise from April – but not by quite as much as the original 9 per cent that had been mooted

The BBC licence fee will rise by £10.50 to £169.50 a year, the Culture Secretary has confirmed.

The household payment, which funds much of the corporation’s operations, had been frozen at £159 and was set to rise in line with inflation next year.

However, the expected 9% increase – which would have meant an increase of around £15 from April 2024 – has been reduced, the Government said.

A general view of BBC Broadcasting House, in central London. Picture: Lucy North/PA Wire

Speaking in the Commons on Thursday, Lucy Frazer said the increase will instead be based on September’s consumer prices index (CPI) rate of inflation which was 6.7 per cent. This will mean an increase of £10.50 to £169.50 per year.

The news comes after the veteran TV executive Dr Samir Shah was named on Wednesday as the Government’s preferred candidate to become BBC chairman.