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A Co Clare pharma worker has stood up in court to tell a judge that he will not paying his TV licence or any fines for not doing so because of “the corruption in RTÉ”.

orker has stood up in court to tell a judge that he will not paying his TV licence or any fines for not doing so because of “the corruption in RTÉ”.

At Ennis District Court, James Scanlon told Judge Alec Gabbett that it is “an unjust law” that requires him to pay the annual €160 TV licence.

In the case, an An Post licence inspector gave sworn evidence in court of calling to Mr Scanlon’s home at O’Garney Heights, Sixmilebridge on January 26th last and Mr Scanlon did not have a TV licence.

The case against Mr Scanlon was one of 70 An Post prosecutions listed against people who did not have a TV licence.

Mr Scanlon said that he had no issue with the evidence by the An Post inspector but stated that he would not be paying for his TV licence or any fine.’Corruption in RTÉ’

Addressing Judge Gabbett, Mr Scanlon said: “I have no intention of paying the TV licence, no intention of paying any fine or costs because of the corruption in RTÉ and how it is funded.”

Judge Gabbett said that Mr Scanlon was setting out his position “which is fine” but he said that he was convicting him and fining him €160 for not having a TV licence and ordered him to pay an additional €80 in costs.

Speaking outside court after the case, Mr Scanlon said that he was willing to go to prison over the non-payment of the TV licence fine.

The jailing of those refusing to pay TV licence fines is now seen as a last resort and an attachment of an earnings order, a recovery order and community service are steps before imprisonment is considered.

Mr Scanlon said: “Like any unjust law if you go back to the rod licence, if there is civil disobedience then it becomes uncollectible and the law is got rid of.”

The native of Listowel, Co Kerry said: “If everyone refuses to pay their TV licence then the law will become obsolete.”The native of Listowel, Co Kerry said: “If everyone refuses to pay their TV licence then the law will become obsolete.”

Mr Scanlon said that he wasn’t disheartened that he was the only person in court refusing to pay his licence because of the scandal at the broadcaster last year.

He said: “Maybe some people who were present might now do something different.”

He said: “I wasn’t going to go into court and weasel my way out of it and pretend the TV belongs to someone else.

“It is an archaic system and there are modern ways of collecting it. All RTÉ has to do is put everything behind a paywall and if they want to give OAPs a free code to watch RTÉ, technology would allow that.”