EVERY year around this time, I vent my spleen on one particular subject that I find loathsome. And I shall never stop moaning about it until common-sense prevails and a national scandal is ended.

I’m talking about the TV licence fee which is due every year on July 31 in my house.

I always pay it to keep within the law, but always leave it until the last possible moment.

This year, I have found a succession of reasons to abhor the charge even more than usual: Firstly, like many of you, I’m a bit strapped for cash at present.

To my delight, I received a cheque from the DVLA for a car tax refund of £163. But before I could bank this and relieve my cash flow problems, a demand from TV Licensing for £145.50 turned up in the post the very next day.

The Lord giveth and the tax authorities taketh away.

Secondly, there’s been a lot of righteous indignation lately about Rupert Murdoch and his media monopolisation.

But at least you have a choice with Mr Murdoch whether or not you subscribe to his Sky TV. I know there’s not much of an option, but you can say no to a dish, whereas it’s almost impossible to turn down the BBC.

You can tell them you never ever watch the Beeb or use its services, but as long as you own a telly, you have to cough up.

And even if you don’t own a TV, you’ll still have inspectors pestering you. I know this from personal experience because I didn’t have a set for about eight years.

The third thing to get my goat was a press release that arrived last week from TV Licensing.

It revealed about 830 people had been caught watching TV in Milton Keynes without a licence in the first half of 2011. This compared to around 190 in Aylesbury and 180 in High Wycombe. They were among 197,000 people caught across the UK during the period.

A TV Licensing spokesman was quoted as saying: “We take TV Licence evasion very seriously and we will not hesitate to prosecute if people continue to break the law.”

Anyone watching TV illegally risks prosecution and a fine of up to £1,000.

What an outrageous waste of time and effort.

Let’s get things into perspective – we are not talking about drug or crime rings here; this is simply about people choosing to use an electronic gadget without the correct paperwork.

How I wish this kind of effort went into tackling low-level vandalism or theft. I have fallen victim to petty crime three times in the past few years and not once have the police fully investigated.

And yet, if I dared to forget to pay my TV licence, I’d have the full power of the state thrown at me. Whatever next – dawn raids on those who forget to hand back library books on time?

The TV licence sums up everything that is wrong with the UK. Petty self-perpetuating officialdom which serves no real purpose is given the authority to invade our privacy while all other state functions such as the NHS and police have resources drained and crumble away around us.

The BBC is just one of a multitude of channels now, despite its fine public service tradition. The licence fee gives it an unfair competitive advantage against rivals who have to stand on their own two feet.

As I’ve said previously, there’s nothing wrong with advertising or sponsorship. And if push comes to shove, a small addition could be made to one’s income tax which would be fairer.

I suppose if I truly believed, I should resist payment and have my day in court, but I simply couldn’t bear to have a criminal conviction based on this Big Brother concept.

So I shall pay my £145.50 on July 31 under duress. But I will get my money’s worth by (in the words of Just William’s Violet Elizabeth Bott) thcreaming and thcreaming and thcreaming until I’m thick.

Well, we must all be thick to carry on allowing this tax to hit us every year.