Why should we pay licence fee for a TV set that’s not receiving RTÉ?

THE TV licence in Ireland is simply a method to raise tax so that a percentage of RTÉ’s costs can be offset by the public purse.

In return for paying this tax, you get the semi publicly-funded national broadcaster. It is not a bad deal as RTÉ provides a very good service and, channel for channel, stands up well against most other stations from abroad.

However, the latest move from the authorities should raise eyebrows. They are proposing to make it the law that the ownership of an actual television should incur this tax whether RTÉ is being received by that TV set or not.

There are many uses for a small television set that do not include receiving a broadcaster’s signal. Most small compact models now include a DVD player and can be used exclusively for that. The same set can take a feed from a video camera to show the holiday movies. A TV set can be a useful second monitor for your PC.

Professional film-makers and videographers use a set to view their day’s work. None of these activities has anything to do with availing of RTÉ’s fare. It is the equivalent of extending the dog licence to include stuffed toy dogs, dog ornaments and photographs of dogs. The big worry is that legislators hurrying to raise money are introducing laws that do not make sense or command respect from the majority. It is a recipe for the old Irish tradition of ‘us and them’ where the only wrong is getting caught.

John Mallon

Mayfield

Cork