How the BBC spends our money
Updated on 18 October 2007
The BBC today unveils plans for its future which could include 2,500 job cuts and the possible sell-off of Television Centre. But where does the money from our licence fee go?
As well as the job losses, which are expected to fall most heavily on news and the factual division, the plans include a 10 per cent cut in the number of programmes actually commissioned by the BBC. This will lead to more repeats on television.
Director general Mark Thompson received unanimous backing for the plans by the BBC Trust yesterday, although staff attacked the trustees for "rubber stamping" cutbacks.
BBC Trust chairman Sir Michael Lyons said: "After six months of very detailed work by the management and rigorous testing and challenge from the BBC Trust, we are confident that the plans we have approved today will safeguard the core values of the BBC at a time of radical and accelerating change in technology, markets and audience expectations."
But how does the BBC currently operate?
How the fee breaks down
The monthly cost of the licence fee (£10.96) can be broken down as follows:
- £7.54 goes on eight national TV channels, including BBC1, BBC2 and regional programmes.
- £1.17 goes on the 10 national radio stations, which cover music, news and sport.
- £1.01 is the cost of broadcasting all TV and radio output, and the cost of collecting the licence fee from 25 million homes.
- 75p covers the 40 local radio stations.
- 49p is spent on the 240 bbc.co.uk websites.
The BBC World Service is funded by Government grant and not the TV licence.
The licence fee
The licence feed was first introduced on 1 November, 1922 at a cost of 10 shillings (50p). Today the licence fee for a colour TV costs £135.50 per year, and Is expected to rise to £151.50 over the next six years.
The staffing
The BBC employs 17,914 people in UK public services broadcasting posts. Other posts across BBC World Service are paid for by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. The total number of posts worldwide was 23,037.
In 2006, director general Mark Thompson saw his pay packet increase by £160,000 from £459,000 to £619,000.
The audience
It's believed that 92.5 per cent of the UK population use a BBC service every month.
In 2005/6, BBC new media reached 12.3 million unique users per week in the UK and 24.3 million worldwide.
The services
The BBC provides eight interactive TV channels, 10 radio networks, more than 50 local TV and radio services and its website - bbc.co.uk.
In July it launched on-demand TV service, BBC iPlayer.
In 2005/6, 30.8 per cent of programmes shown on BBC 1 were repeats, with 8.9 per cent repeats in peak time.
The arrival of digital services in 2002 marked the largest expansion of radio in the BBC's history. Channels included 1 Xtra, 5 Live Sports Extra, 6 Music and BBC 7.
In 2006, director general Mark Thompson saw his pay packet increase by £160,000 from £459,000 to £619,000.
