The Dáil’s Public Accounts Committee will on Thursday hold a third – and sixth overall for Dáil committees – session on RTÉ's finances and undisclosed payments to Ryan Tubridy. It will be the first time the new director general, Kevin Bakhurst, sits in front of a committee since he took up the reins, and comes days after Tubridy and his agent, Noel Kelly, faced almost seven hours of questions from politicians in their own high-profile appearance. Amid a controversy that is constantly evolving, what will RTÉ be asked to address?
The email
Front and centre will be the emergence of an email that appears to contradict RTÉ's position on a matter of key importance: the broadcaster’s willingness to underwrite a commercial deal between Tubridy and Renault worth €75,000 a year. RTÉ has consistently said that there was pushback against the idea that it would underwrite the commercial agreement, and that for months the underwriting element was sought by Kelly but was never agreed to. “There was no way RTÉ would underwrite a deal like that,” acting deputy director general Adrian Lynch told the media committee on June 28th.
The emergence, via Kelly and Tubridy, of an email from February 2020 where then chief financial officer Breda O’Keeffe (copying in then director general Dee Forbes and head of content Jim Jennings) outlines a willingness to “provide you with a side letter to underwrite this fee for the duration of the contract” will, doubtless, prompt a flurry of questions to RTÉ.
Kelly and Tubridy’s version
Tubridy and his agent were consistent on two key arguments during their appearance at PAC and the media committee earlier this week. Firstly, that the deal with Renault resulting in €75,000 was separate to the star’s contract negotiations and had nothing to do with his fee income dropping in those contract negotiations. Secondly, that the deeply unorthodox invoicing for these fees was done on instruction from RTÉ. Committee members expressed deep scepticism about the invoicing in particular on Tuesday, with Labour’s Alan Kelly straightforwardly telling Noel Kelly: “I don’t buy that.” RTÉ is likely to be asked whether Kelly and Tubridy’s version tallies with its own – in effect, whether they buy it.
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The basis for payments
The PAC is also likely to delve back into the complex issue of what was the underlying basis for €150,000 in payments made to Ryan Tubridy through barter accounts. RTÉ have indicated that the obligation was effectively rolled over from an original so-called tripartite agreement struck in 2020. However, the committee is likely to home in on several aspects of this. For one, the deal only covered the period September 2020 to the end of 2021. Secondly, it makes no mention of the figure of €75,000. Thirdly, it was not countersigned by anyone in RTÉ and it wasn’t signed by anyone on behalf of Tubridy until April 2023. The fact that RTÉ had a legal obligation to pay Tubridy isn’t contested, but the extent to which that agreement to pay was robustly grounded in documentation is likely to be a focus.
Paying back RTÉ
Ryan Tubridy has indicated that he is willing to repay the €150,000 which was to cover events taking place in 2021 and 2022, which have yet to be held. Those payments were ultimately made by RTÉ, although Renault were to be the beneficiaries of the events under the original tripartite deal. Does any lingering obligation remain to take part in any events (although it seems fanciful anyone would actually want to enforce on this)? If it does, and Tubridy is ultimately released from any obligation, will RTÉ seek the money back?
Packages for departing staff
Unions at RTÉ have sought clarity over whether and what size package was paid to O’Keeffe when she was departing in 2020. Given the spate of departures from the broadcaster in recent days and weeks, members will look to drill down into what sort of payments may have been made to those departing.
The 2017-2019 payments
There is something approaching clarity on these payments, totalling €120,000, following Tubridy and Kelly’s committee appearance on Tuesday. The two men say that, after the presenter agreed to forego a loyalty bonus at the end of his contract equating to this, RTÉ (in the face of their objections) decided to reduce amounts it had already paid him when publishing this. RTÉ is likely to be asked to explain this seemingly unusual accounting practice.
The future of RTÉ
Bakhurst was out of the picture for the key events in the Tubridy controversy, but he is key to the broadcaster’s recovery. He is likely to face questions about how he plans to make good that recovery, with an emphasis on cultural overhaul, but perhaps more pressingly, the financial health of the station. Constant lobbying by his predecessor did not reach a new settlement with the Government on the future financing of the station – can Bakhurst achieve one under more pressure and scrutiny, and what does he think a sustainable future looks like?
The June 22nd statement
Kelly told the PAC on Tuesday that the June 22nd statement from RTÉ announcing the crisis to the world was only given to him half an hour before it went out, at which point they raised issues about inaccuracies. Tubridy told the committee that if RTÉ had not “rushed everything out, 99 per cent of this whole thing would not have been an issue”. Members may examine the exact sequence that led up to the publication, the dialogue with Tubridy and others beforehand.
Cars and barter accounts
Ultimately not directly related to the Tubridy affair, but questions about cars for staff and the use of the barter account are relevant to wider issues of culture, governance and oversight at RTÉ. Expect questions on whether there’s more to disclose here, as well as any update on the promised register of interests for staff.
