The BBC will have to make deep cuts to its programme budgets after the Government said the broadcaster’s funding would be frozen for the next two years, with the licence fee abolished completely in 2027.

In a statement, Bethnal Green and Bow MP Rushanara Ali said:

'I completely oppose the decision by the Government to abolish the BBC's licence fee. The BBC is one of the most respected media outlets in the world, with the World Service reaching 279 million people a week and the BBC News website the world’s most visited. At an individual cost of just 43p per day, the BBC reaches and reflects audiences from every background. During the pandemic, one week into lockdown, the BBC launched the biggest educational programme in recent history to ensure children had to learn support. Instead of valuing the BBC's record, this global asset is being tossed aside by Boris Johnson's ideological agendas that have no place in a democracy. The Government cannot destroy an almost 100-year-old public institution because it opposes its editorial positions. A neutral state broadcaster is irreplaceable and the announcement by Nadine Dorries over the weekend represents nothing more than brazen vandalism to a free and fair press. I will do everything in my power to stop such a destructive decision.'