The television licence fee is to rise to £131.50 from 1 April, a 4.2% increase, the government has announced.
Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell said it would enable the BBC to continue to provide a "strong and distinctive schedule". The current fee is £126.50.

She said the licence fee for 2006-7 would enable the BBC to remain at the "forefront of broadcasting technology".

The current settlement allows for the fee to be increased by the level of inflation plus 1.5% up to April 2007.

The government also revealed that the total television licence fee revenue collected by the BBC for 2000-1 to 2004-5 was more than £13bn.