The Bizarre BBC

An Indian colleague at work is over working with us for two years. He came over today to ask about something he'd been told by a TV salesman ' You need a licence.' My friend: 'A licence? For what?'. TV Salesman: ' You need a licence to own a television.' My friend: 'Why?'. TV Salesman: 'To pay for the BBC, otherwise you get fined or locked up.' 

Complete and utter incomprehension on the part of my Indian friend. Quite. You get locked up in this country if you do not pay a tax for a box that can receive audio-visual signals.

When will any politican of any stamp actually address this bizarre hangover of British imperial paternalism? Would I mind if it was actually politically balanced rather than actively left-wing? You know, I rather I think I would. The television tax is one of the most illiberal things in Britain. It irritates me regularly. It's when I have a conversation with a friend from abroad like this that it really, really flummoxes me.