Brits must have access to free-to-air TV, minister says, as licence change looms
Culture Minister Sir Chris Bryant has said that everyone in Britain must have access to free-to-air television.
Free-to-air terrestrial broadcast TV is only secure until the early 2030s, when current licences expire. The Broadcast 2040+ coalition, whose members include the Digital Poverty Alliance (DPA) and the Rural Services Network, is urging the Government to commit to a hybrid future for TV and radio services, ensuring continued universal access to terrestrial TV alongside internet streaming, so that no one is left-behind.
Sir Chris said free TV is an 'essential part of modern society' but failed to say what model the Government might support, prompting campaigners to demand that traditional TV must continue alongside any streaming. It comes after reports of all the celebrities rumoured to be joining BBC Strictly Come Dancing 2025.
Asked if he could assure Brits that terrestrial TV wouldn't be ditched when licences expire in the early 2030s, Sir Chris told The Mirror: "Well, whatever we end up with, we have to make sure that everybody is able to have free-to-air television.
'You can't have the BBC and ITV and Channel Four and Channel Five and channels like that completely disappearing from elderly people's television screens.
'We need to make sure whatever system we end up with in the future is one that enables everybody to have access to high quality television. I'm sure that's what we'll have. We've managed several of these transitions in the past quite well, and we need to manage that transition as well.'
He added: 'I think access to free to air broadcasting is an essential part of a modern society, just as access to the internet is, and I think we need to take the whole of the country with us."
Campaigners have raised concerns that older people and poorer families could be left behind if they're forced to switch over to internet streaming, due to lack of consumer awareness, or not being able to afford costs of equipment or installation of fibre connection.
Adults aged 75 and older watched an average of 5 hours 41 minutes of broadcaster television a day in 2024, up 3% since 2023, according to media regulator Ofcom's 2025 media report.
A Broadcast 2040+ spokesman said: 'The Broadcast2040+ campaign welcomes the Minister's commitment to ensuring that free to air broadcasting remains available to everybody. But this will only be possible if traditional TV continues alongside streaming.
'Millions cannot afford to watch TV through high speed broadband, they cannot receive these services or they simply do not want to consume TV in that way. While viewing habits for many are changing that is not the case for everyone in our society. The government should therefore continue to support traditional broadcasting into the 2040s at the very least.'
Dennis Reed, director of Silver Voices, said: "Millions of older people will breathe a sigh of relief that the Minister has committed to continuance of free to air television and public broadcasting beyond 2034.
'Because internet-based TV requires an expensive fast broadband contract, it cannot be free to air unless the Government pays for universal broadband to all homes, which seems unlikely. Therefore the only way to meet this welcome commitment is to upgrade and fund terrestrial TV to continue alongside paid-for streaming services for the foreseeable future.'
Elizabeth Anderson, chief executive of the DPA, said: "We're so glad the Minister supports the need to ensure that everyone has access to trusted and popular channels like the BBC and ITV, and recognising the free to air nature of TV through an aerial as being an essential lifeline for many.
'We know the Minister also recognises that the cost of internet access is a barrier for many, as well as the usability of digital services, and the DPA therefore supports the campaign to keep the traditional TV broadcast past 2034, so that more people aren't pushed the wrong side of the digital divide without a safety net.'
The Government last week announced £9.5million for local charities and councils to tackle digital inequality by improving people's tech skills and getting more people online.
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