SIR – I thank Mr Rhodes (Letters, January 11) for putting me straight regarding the fact that the ‘free’ TV licence is updated every three years and not annually, and that yes, it is a legal requirement.

Does Mr Rhodes consider it to be a sensible requirement? In my view it does nothing more than accentuate the absurdity.

Why does someone aged 75 or over have to be in possession of a piece of paper that needs to be updated every three years?

In these cost-cutting days, where the Government is looking at ways of saving money, it could start here, and put an end to this bureaucratic nonsense!

John Ibbotson, Crownest Road, Bingley