Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to commission an independent review of the BBC’s funding needs to ensure that it receives the resources needed to meet the responsibilities set out in its Charter.

The BBC’s funding model is agreed with the Corporation as part of the Royal Charter. It was last considered as part of Charter Review 2015-16, during which process the Government committed to maintain the licence fee funding model for the BBC for the duration of the current Charter period, lasting until the end of 2027.

The current licence fee settlement is agreed until April 2022. Negotiations between the Government and the BBC for the next licence fee period, 2022-27, will begin in due course. The Government will set out more detail on the process to be followed ahead of negotiations.