Written answers
Thursday, 16 November 2023
Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht
Television Licence Fee
Brendan Griffin (Kerry, Fine Gael)
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157. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the up-to-date figures relating to TV licence fee renewals and new licences; if she will provide a month-by-month comparison, in tabular format, between 2022 and 2023 showing the number of licences renewed and each new license in each respective month by all transactional methods, and the associated revenue generated by these renewal; if the available figures for November so far would be provided; if the cumulative loss in revenue so far in 2023 (versus the same period in 2022) would be provided; if county by county data exists and, if so, if it will be provided in respect of each category above; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [50458/23]
Catherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party)
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The first table below shows the number of first time licence sales and licence renewals in 2022. This information is also broken down into licence sales made at a post office, online, by phone, and by direct debit.
2022 First time Licence Sales and Licence Renewals
| MONTH | SALES 2022 | Web, Phone, and Post Office Renewal | Web, Phone, and Post Office First Time Licence | Direct Debit Renewal | Direct DebitFirst Time Licence | Total Renewal | Total First Time Licence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 78,050 | 55,068 | 9,502 | 12,746 | 734 | 67,814 | 10,236 |
| February | 70,648 | 48,322 | 8,130 | 13,082 | 1,114 | 61,404 | 9,244 |
| March | 74,098 | 51,643 | 8,526 | 13,102 | 827 | 64,745 | 9,353 |
| April | 73,942 | 51,410 | 8,715 | 12,826 | 991 | 64,236 | 9,706 |
| May | 73,624 | 51,770 | 8,249 | 12,515 | 1,090 | 64,285 | 9,339 |
| June | 75,067 | 52,429 | 8,004 | 13,617 | 1,017 | 66,047 | 9,020 |
| July | 76,769 | 54,120 | 8,537 | 13,077 | 1,035 | 67,197 | 9,572 |
| August | 77,736 | 54,505 | 8,392 | 13,760 | 1,079 | 68,265 | 9,471 |
| September | 93,365 | 66,333 | 9,211 | 16,785 | 1,036 | 83,118 | 10,247 |
| October | 94,905 | 67,653 | 8,721 | 17,295 | 1,236 | 84,948 | 9,957 |
| November | 87,750 | 64,484 | 9,794 | 12,168 | 1,304 | 76,652 | 11,098 |
| December | 71,970 | 51,011 | 7,614 | 12,251 | 1,094 | 63,262 | 8,708 |
By way of comparison, the following table shows the number of first time licence sales and licence renewals to the end of October 2023. Detailed sales channel information is not yet available for November.
2023 First time Licence Sales and Licence Renewals to date
| MONTH | SALES 2023 | Web, Phone, and Post Office Renewal | Web, Phone and Post Office First Time Licence | Direct Debit Renewal | Direct DebitFirst Time Licence | Total Renewal | Total First Time Licence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 78,389 | 55,574 | 9,659 | 12,419 | 737 | 67,993 | 10,396 |
| February | 71,891 | 49,047 | 8,433 | 12,772 | 1,639 | 61,819 | 10,072 |
| March | 79,210 | 55,796 | 9,376 | 12,720 | 1,318 | 68,516 | 10,694 |
| April | 68,795 | 47,585 | 7,538 | 12,487 | 1,185 | 60,072 | 8,723 |
| May | 73,598 | 52,181 | 7,937 | 12,236 | 1,244 | 64,417 | 9,181 |
| June | 73,421 | 51,116 | 7,602 | 13,296 | 1,407 | 64,412 | 9,009 |
| July | 53,882 | 35,143 | 4,960 | 12,692 | 1,087 | 47,835 | 6,047 |
| August | 54,664 | 36,688 | 4,124 | 13,094 | 758 | 49,782 | 4,882 |
| September | 66,000 | 44,816 | 4,211 | 16,228 | 745 | 61,044 | 4,956 |
| October | 67,722 | 46,530 | 4,133 | 16,467 | 592 | 62,997 | 4,725 |
The most recent recent data provided by An Post, as the statutory TV licence issuing agent, up to 12th November 2023 show that there were 22,266 total renewals and 2,216 total first time licences. The figures for the equivalent period in 2022 are as follows: 3,552 first time licences and 23,020 total renewals.
Finally, this third table shows the difference between full monthly figures from January to October in 2022 and 2023, and the resultant difference in revenue. As full sales information for the month of November is not available, it would not be appropriate to make an assumption on any potential loss of revenue for the month at this stage.
2022 and 2023 Licence Sales and Sales Revenue
| MONTH | SALES 2022 | SALES 2023 | Difference in Licence Sales | Difference in Revenue (Difference * €160) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 78,050 | 78,389 | 339 | €54,240 |
| February | 70,648 | 71,891 | 1,243 | €198,880 |
| March | 74,098 | 79,210 | 5,112 | €817,920 |
| April | 73,942 | 68,795 | -5,147 | -€823,520 |
| May | 73,624 | 73,598 | -26 | -€4,160 |
| June | 75,067 | 73,421 | -1,646 | -€263,360 |
| July | 76,769 | 53,882 | -22,887 | -€3,661,920 |
| August | 77,736 | 54,664 | -23,072 | -€3,691,520 |
| September | 93,365 | 66,000 | -27,365 | -€4,378,400 |
| October | 94,905 | 67,722 | -27,183 | -€4,349,280 |
| TOTAL | 788,204 | 687,572 | -100,632 | -€16,101,120 |
County-by-county data is not available for any of the above.
The TV licence funds a broad range of public service content, enabling essential news and current affairs programming, as well as supporting the creation of a high quality content on culture, sport, entertainment, music and more. It supports many broadcasters and independent producers, in addition to RTÉ. It remains critically important that people continue to pay the TV Licence fee. It is not only required by law, it underpins availability of public service content which is of critical importance to our democracy and society.
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