Enlarge image
French President Emmanuel Macron is implementing his campaign theme
Photo: CHRISTOPHE PETIT TESSON / EPA
The abolition of broadcasting fees in France, which was pushed by President Emmanuel Macron, is getting closer.
After the National Assembly, the Senate, as the second chamber of parliament, also voted for a corresponding article as part of the review of the supplementary budget.
On the night of Tuesday, 196 senators voted in favor of the first reading, 147 voted against.
In the future, public service broadcasting is to be financed, among other things, by part of the VAT.
However, the Senate wants this regulation to only apply until the end of 2024.
The government should come up with a real reform of the sector in the transition period, accompanied by an appropriate allocation of funds, said an accepted amendment.
The broadcasting fee in France has so far been 138 euros per year.
It is due for all households that own a television.
Macron had announced the abolition of the fee during the election campaign.
He wanted to counteract the rising cost of living and increase people's purchasing power.
Far-reaching changes
A restructuring of the broadcasting system has been on Macron's agenda for years.
In addition to the programs of Radio France and France Télévisions, the current fees also finance the research and archive institute INA, the internationally oriented news channels France 24 and RFI and the French part of the German-French culture channel Arte.
The trade unions fear that abolition would result in a loss of revenue of three billion euros and do not trust the government's promise that this will be compensated.
Last week, public radio and television stations had already gone on strike because of the planned change: radio stations only played music programs, the television stations showed repeats.
mrc/dpa
