Many older people on low incomes have told us that if they have to find £150 plus a year to pay for a licence then they will have to forego some other essential, or try to survive without TV at all.

We genuinely worry about the mental health of older people living on their own in this situation if they have to give up their cherished TV - for some it really is all they have and their main way of alleviating their chronic loneliness.

Everyone needs to understand that under the BBC's scheme many hundreds of thousands of the poorest pensioners will be facing a bill they will simply be unable to afford to pay.

That's due to its flawed design - you only get a free licence if you are receiving Pension Credit but as many as 2 in 5 of all the pensioners on the lowest incomes do not receive this benefit, even though they are entitled to it @Car_Abrahams @age_uk