Little sentiment in sight for culture

By Peter Calder

The Government can be sure that abolishing the public broadcasting fee is worth a few votes, but the most vocal critics of the fee doubt that the Budget undertaking means a lot.

Originally known as the television licence, it has long been among the most widely resented of imposts, although the argument that it was an illegal tax has so far not prevailed.

Ned Haliburton, a spokesman for a group which has tried at District and High Court level to have it declared illegal (an appeal is set down for July before a full Bench of the Court of Appeal), was yesterday describing as "just a promise" the announcement that the fee will be scrapped from the end of June next year.

"They will continue to demand it up until then," Mr Haliburton said. "And what if the other crowd [Labour] get in? They will get rid of [the Budget measure]."

The fee, distributed by New Zealand On Air to pay for public broadcasting, Maori programming and local content on television, among other things, has never entirely captured the public imagination.

Its original name reflected the fact that it was levied only on homes with TV sets - which was partly how it escaped definition as a tax - and as the advertising ratios on free-to-air television grew, so did public resentment of the fee.

Much of middle New Zealand questioned the fairness of having to pay for access radio or promoting the work of local musicians and performers when they preferred the imported variety. Arguments about the nurturing of our national identity were howled down as elitist or arty.

Funding NZ On Air from general taxation does mean everyone pays. The total cost will be smaller since collection costs (11 per cent of the $98 million) will be saved. But the one in 15 liable households which at present escape will start paying their share, if only indirectly.

Yet NZ On Air has every reason to be concerned. For a start, this move sidesteps its repeated requests for an increase in the fee so it can do its job better (it has not risen in 10 years).

Now the funding is less secure. Without the protection of a BBC-style charter, NZ On Air may feel more than slightly exposed. A Government which cuts allocations to schools and hospitals will not be too sentimental about paying for culture.

The bright side of paying the amount out of general taxation is that it will no longer wallop every household $110, irrespective of ability to pay. With some luck, that will make it easier for politicians to vote for a long-overdue increase in the funding of New Zealand on air.

The Government can be sure that abolishing the public broadcasting fee is worth a few votes, but the most vocal critics of the fee doubt that the Budget undertaking means a lot.

Originally known as the television licence, it has long been among the most widely resented of imposts, although the argument that it was an illegal tax has so far not prevailed.

Ned Haliburton, a spokesman for a group which has tried at District and High Court level to have it declared illegal (an appeal is set down for July before a full Bench of the Court of Appeal), was yesterday describing as "just a promise" the announcement that the fee will be scrapped from the end of June next year.

"They will continue to demand it up until then," Mr Haliburton said. "And what if the other crowd [Labour] get in? They will get rid of [the Budget measure]."

The fee, distributed by New Zealand On Air to pay for public broadcasting, Maori programming and local content on television, among other things, has never entirely captured the public imagination.

Its original name reflected the fact that it was levied only on homes with TV sets - which was partly how it escaped definition as a tax - and as the advertising ratios on free-to-air television grew, so did public resentment of the fee.

Much of middle New Zealand questioned the fairness of having to pay for access radio or promoting the work of local musicians and performers when they preferred the imported variety. Arguments about the nurturing of our national identity were howled down as elitist or arty.

Funding NZ On Air from general taxation does mean everyone pays. The total cost will be smaller since collection costs (11 per cent of the $98 million) will be saved. But the one in 15 liable households which at present escape will start paying their share, if only indirectly.

Yet NZ On Air has every reason to be concerned. For a start, this move sidesteps its repeated requests for an increase in the fee so it can do its job better (it has not risen in 10 years).

Now the funding is less secure. Without the protection of a BBC-style charter, NZ On Air may feel more than slightly exposed. A Government which cuts allocations to schools and hospitals will not be too sentimental about paying for culture.

The bright side of paying the amount out of general taxation is that it will no longer wallop every household $110, irrespective of ability to pay. With some luck, that will make it easier for politicians to vote for a long-overdue increase in the funding of New Zealand on Air.