A new meaning of égalité...
From the Guardian online...and for how many unnecessary government jobs will this silly tax provide?
The French government is considering extending the television licence fee to include computer screen owners to boost revenues for public-sector broadcasting operations, the culture minister said on Saturday.
President François Hollande's Socialist government aims to raise an extra €7.5bn (£6bn) this year through tax rises included in an amended budget bill to be unveiled next week.
"Is it necessary to extend the fee to [computer] screens when you do not have a television? It is a question we're asking ourselves, but obviously it would be a fee per household and you would not have to pay an [additional] fee if you have a computer and a television," Aurélie Filippetti said on RTL radio.
She said the government would study the new measure in 2013.
The licence fee – €125 in mainland France and €80 in its overseas territories – is used to finance public television and radio.
According to a Global TV survey in March, more than 11 million French people watch television programmes on computer screens, tablets or smart phones, a rise of 41% on 2011.
Several of my friends who work on multiple screens would not like this tax, although it seems to be a per household tax. I do not trust it staying that way. Somehow, I do not think Sarkozy would have pushed this...The French get what they deserve, as they voted for radical socialism.
