Whitehouse Consultancy: BBC Funding Poll

ComRes interviewed 2,049 GB adults online between 27th and 29th June 2014. Data were weighted to be representative of all GB adults ages 18+. ComRes is a member of the British Polling Council and abides by its rules.

Date Published: 03 Jul 2014

Categories: Business | Consumer | Media | Public and communities | UK

Description

Four in ten (40%) British adults support the current system of funding the BBC, however, just as many oppose it (40%). Of the four potential funding models tested, the one which gained most popular support is abolishing the licence fee and making the BBC fund itself, even if that means adverts during programmes, reducing the number of original programmes they can produce or scrapping their public service broadcasting duty (51% support, 34% oppose).

o    The highest level of support for the current way of funding the BBC comes from Britons aged 65+ (52%).

o    There is also a clear pattern of difference by social grade, with those in social grades AB (50%), C1 (44%) being more likely to support the licence fee than those in social grades C2 (30%) and DE (33%).

o    Conversely, abolishing the licence fee and making the BBC fund itself is particularly popular among C2s (59%) and DEs (58%) compared to ABs (41%) and C1s (47%).

A third (36%) of Britons support abolishing the licence fee and introducing a subscription fee paid only by those who want to access the BBC while 44% oppose this proposed model of funding.

·         The least popular option for funding the BBC is to abolish the licence fee and increase taxes, just one in five (18%) support this proposal while two-thirds (64%) oppose it.

 Q. Do you support or oppose the following ways in which the BBC should be funded?

	Support	Oppose	Don't know
Abolishing the licence fee and making the BBC fund itself, even if that means adverts during programmes, reducing the number of original programmes they can produce or scrapping their public service broadcasting duty	51%	34%	15%
The current system of a compulsory licence fee paid by individuals who watch live television	40%	40%	20%
Abolishing the licence fee and introducing a subscription fee paid only by those who want to access the BBC	36%	44%	20%
Abolishing the licence fee and funding the BBC through increased taxes	18%	64%	18%

Base: 2,049 GB adults

 

METHODOLOGY NOTE

ComRes interviewed 2,049 British adults online between 27^th and 29^th June 2014. Data were weighted to be demographically representative of all GB adults aged 18+. ComRes is a member of the British Polling Council and abides by its rules.