Chris Stephens
Main Page: Chris Stephens (Scottish National Party - Glasgow South West)(8 years, 3 months ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text
Karen Bradley
I must declare an interest: I have cousins who live in the village of Hadfield, otherwise known as Royston Vasey, and I am extremely keen to ensure that more people visit it, because they will go to my cousins’ village shop.
Chris Stephens (Glasgow South West) (SNP)
Can the Secretary of State confirm that her colleagues will publish, by local authority area, the cost of free television licences for the over-75s? I was told in a written parliamentary answer that the Scottish figure was £49 million, which is a lot of money. Will the Secretary of State respond to the criticism, made by many of us, that transferring that cost from the Government to the BBC will have a detrimental effect on high-quality programming?
Karen Bradley
I simply do not agree that there will be an impact on programming when the BBC’s guaranteed licence fee is rising in line with inflation over a five-year period.