'TV licence has to be scrapped,' Dáil told

In total, there were 768,000 licences sold for all of 2025 — a 3% decline on the 792,000 licences sold in 2024. File picture: Nick Ansell/PA Wire

The Government must choose between "chasing people through the courts" or funding RTÉ through the exchequer, the Dáil has been told.

Sinn Féin's Pearse Doherty told Tánaiste Simon Harris the television licence "is in big trouble, and it has had its day" in the Dáil.

New figures provided by minister for State at the Department of Culture, Charlie McConalogue, show the 299,373 television licences sold to the end of May mark a 4.5% decrease year on year.

In total, there were 768,000 licences sold for all of 2025 — a 3% decline on the 792,000 licences sold in 2024.

In 2023, the year the RTÉ secret payments controversy came to light, TV licence sales fell by 13%, from 947,924 in 2022 to 824,278 in 2023.

Mr Doherty said sales of the licence "have collapsed".

"When we consider that nearly 1m licences were sold in 2022, we can see the scale of the problem," he said.

"One-in-three households liable to pay have simply stopped paying the television licence. 

"It is a staggering drop in the past four years, and the public are sick to their teeth of the raft of financial scandals at RTÉ, the constant waste of public money, and that culture of entitlement that does not seem to have gone away."

He said people are voting with their feet. 

"Sales are plummeting every year, and it presents a real problem for the funding of public media. 

"It also presents the Government with a decision. It has to choose whether to chase hundreds of thousands of people through the courts for not paying their television licence or it can move to a modern, sustainable funding model though the exchequer.

"It is time to face reality. The TV licence has to be scrapped. Will the Government scrap the television licence or is its intention to just pursue 300,000 or 400,000 through the courts?"

In response, Mr Harris said that the measurement "is not that crude at all" and that people valued public service broadcasting.

"The reality of the situation is that public service broadcasting matters. 

"Public service broadcasting needs to be funded. I encourage the deputy to support public service broadcasting. There have been a range of scandals and crises in RTÉ, but there are also really good and decent people working in public service broadcasting. 

"There are also really good people working in public service broadcasting beyond RTÉ. I think people in Ireland value public service broadcasting; I do. I have my television licence, and I am sure that the deputy has his."