Peers Push for Decriminalisation of BBC Licence Fee Evasion

Peers in the House of Lords have called for the decriminalisation of BBC licence fee evasion, noting that non-payment results in a disproportionate number of women being prosecuted. Baroness Hoey made the call in the chamber on Tuesday after asking the government what assessment had been made on the number of women who have been prosecuted for non-payment of the television licence in the past two years, noting that around 1,000 people a week are prosecuted for non-payment and that 70 percent of those are women. The non-affiliated peer then criticised the use of the single justice procedure, which she said means that “very often, the mitigating circumstances are not heard. The magistrate is even sitting at home.”...