TV and radio funding debate continues in Poland

Poland's National Broadcasting Council (KRRiT) has announced that two draft amendments have been prepared regarding the current law on television and radio licences.

Speaking to Polish Radio on Monday, Jan Dworak, Chairman of the Board of KRRiT, said that the first project will be ready in a few weeks.

Under the proposed new system, it will be assumed that any household which has electricity contains either a telephone, a radio or a computer must pay the subscription for public TV and radio.

Dworak stressed that people who do not possess any of the above could file for exemption from the fee.

KRRiT acknowledges that it has not yet been decided on whether to include mobile telephones or tablet-style computers such as iPads under the terms of the proposed amendment.

In the summer of 2009, the Civic Platform-led coalition government (which returned to power this October) passed a bill through the lower house of parliament (Sejm), calling for the abolition of the licence, despite opposition from the Law and Justice party.

Civic Platform claimed that it was impossible to collect the subscription, which at present has a take up of under 50 percent of households.

The bill was later passed by the Senate, but in 2010 the Constitutional Tribunal, a supervisory state judicial body, ruled that subscriptions should be collected. (nh/pg)