Ryan Tubridy’s latest contract, along with former director general Dee Forbes’s contract and resignation letter, are among the 31 sets of documents being demanded from RTÉ by the Oireachtas Public Accounts Committee (PAC).
The PAC has given RTÉ management an extra week to come up with the material before it has senior executives back in front of it again, after their initial appearance last Thursday in connection with the RTÉ payments controversy.
Officials are expected to produce the names of everyone involved in the drafting, signing or implementation of the tripartite commercial agreement between Renault, RTÉ and NK Management, as well as a copy of the agreement itself.
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A note on the arrangement under which Ryan Tubridy is operating at RTÉ radio since his contract for television came to an end has been requested.
Earnings of executive board members, including any pension top-ups or benefits; details of the top 100 earners at the broadcaster RTÉ; and costs involved for the controversial Toy Show the Musical, including details of profit and loss, have also been sought.
The notes of the call taken by the in-house lawyer from March 2020 when RTÉ agreed to underwrite the €75,000 a year commercial deal that Renault had with Mr Tubridy are also being requested. This is despite RTÉ's director of legal services Paula Mullooly stating that the note is privileged.
Speaking on Sunday’s This Week programme, PAC chairman Brian Stanley said RTÉ needed to “cop on” and stop hiding behind legal privilege. He urged RTÉ to hand over all documents to the committee.
Its wish list focuses in detail on finances, seeking information on the clients for whom €111,000 was paid through a barter account in 2019 in respect of travel and hotels relating to the Rugby World Cup. It also wants disclosure of the cost of bringing clients to the U2 concert in Croke Park in 2017, and to the K-Club in May 2019.
Members expect to be furnished with copies of all RTÉ bank accounts as well as details of their location.
PAC members have requested information on when cars or other forms of payment provided to employees first emerged, and a list of payments and tickets related to barter accounts.
They also want the draft letter sent over by Tubridy’s agent Noel Kelly in the final hours of negotiations of his contract; and copies of the barter agreement whereby RTÉ paid Tubridy €75,000 on top of his €440,000 annual salary.
The list includes the statement of barter transactions over the course of the last 20 years and a full list of credit notes issued over the last 10 years by RTÉ.
A copy of all bank accounts held by RTÉ and also by TG4, which operates independently of RTÉ but is partially funded from the licence fee, have also been requested.
The PAC wants a full audit over the past five years of appearances by the top 20 stars in RTÉ on shows in which they were not involved.
Committee members want a full list of all talent agents who have executed contracts with RTÉ. They also want to know if talent agents have any stake in production companies that produce shows for RTÉ.
Minutes of all executive board meetings over the past five years have been sought, as has clarification on whether RTÉ crews, facilities and equipment were used at Renault events as part of the commercial arrangement.
PAC vice-chairperson Catherine Murphy said the level of documentation demanded by the committee indicates the level of distrust in RTÉ management that now prevails.
“They would have had advance warning of most of it. It was mentioned at the committee,” she said.
“People are looking to make up their own minds about the material that is provided rather than seeking assurance on things and that goes to the heart of the issue on trust.”
The PAC will be meeting in private on Thursday to discuss how it will handle the next round of meetings with RTÉ management. Ms Murphy said she expected the next meetings to happen before the summer recess or “slightly beyond that”.
