BBC boss Tony Hall says TV licence fee will last another 10 years

He warns viewers will have to pay considerably more when the system is reformed

Tony Hall, the BBC director-general, described last year as being 'fantastic' for the corporation (Getty)

The BBC’s director-general Tony Hall has said he believes the licence fee still has another decade before it will be replaced.

The crossbench peer signalled his belief that viewers will be required to pay more than the annual £145.50 charge should it be replaced by a subscription model.

He said everyone paying something results in producing "great services for a lot less" than if a subscription model or other funding method was used, claiming the corporation's audience believes the case for the fee has strengthened.

Speaking on BBC1's the Andrew Marr Show, Lord Hall also said a "household tax" - as proposed by the Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee - is a "very interesting idea".

He added there is broad agreement for the licence fee to be reformed to ensure "everyone is paying equally for it and I would go along with that".

Lord Hall said the type of reform is up to the Government to decide and the BBC to debate, adding: "It could be a household tax, I don't know whether that works or not. We suggested ways of reforming it so whatever way you consume and use BBC services you can pay for it and I think somewhere in there lies a solution."

The peer said he did not believe the corporation was there to exist as a "market failure" public service broadcaster - adding this view is shared by audiences.

He explained: "Our audiences, when you ask them, actually think that the case for the licence fee as a method of funding the BBC has gone up and has not gone down. That's really important.

"And they believe in a high quality BBC that's producing excellent programmes right across a broad range of genres."

Told the licence fee is regressive and anachronistic, Lord Hall said: "(Culture Secretary John Whittingdale's) own report published before the election said far from the licence fee being anachronistic it's actually got 10 years of life left in it at least."

He went on: "Beyond that Andrew, you and I sitting here 10 years ago had no idea what an iPad was, had no idea about Netflix, had no idea about Spotify - I'll go along with the argument that's it got 10 years life in it.

"And then it went on to say what the licence fee has got to do is what the licence fee has continually done since it was first invented, which is to adapt to modernise, to change because - and this is the principle - by everybody paying something we all get great services for a lot less than if you went down a subscription model or some other route."

Additional reporting by PA