RTÉ director general Dee Forbes says undisclosed Tubridy payments are 'a matter of profound regret'

Ms Forbes' term as director general is due to end on July 11. RTÉ has previously announced that Kevin Bakhurst will replace her.

In a statement this afternoon, she said that she has been "fully engaged with the board since this matter arose in the course of the audit of the accounts."

"When asked in April 2023, I participated in the review conducted by Grant Thornton to determine the full circumstances and facts surrounding to specific payments to fulfill their contractual obligation for the years 2021 and 2022."

Ms Forbes said that Thursday was "an extremely difficult day for all of us who care so deeply about the organisation and the impact of these issues is matter of profound regret."

She added that throughout her tenure as director general, she always "prioritised what I believe are the best interests of the organisation in order to best serve the public."

"This includes pursuing a difficult cost cutting agenda as part of the implementing as part of implementing a wider strategic agenda, all the while navigating the unprecedented challenges of the pandemic," she said.

"I will be making no further public comment at this time."

However, Ms Forbes's statement does not address the key issues at the centre of the controversy — how did these 'specific payments" come about? Was she aware of them and did she sign off on them?

Earlier, the chair of the Oireachtas public accounts committee (PAC) formally called for Ms Forbes to appear before it and give "an immediate and full examination of the hidden and undisclosed payments" 

Sinn Féin TD Brian Stanley says what has happened under the watch of RTÉ's executive board is "utterly unacceptable and yet another serious breach of trust between our national broadcaster and the public."

Mr Stanley said Ms Forbes has "an obligation to come before the committee." 

"We were told yesterday that Ms Forbes was on annual leave. Today we have been told that she is suspended," he said. 

“There is a serious credibility issue here. There is an onus and an obligation on Ms Forbes to attend and I expect her to be there.

“The PAC has been misled by RTÉ representatives, including Ms Forbes. What has occurred is a betrayal of trust and we are demanding a full explanation from those directly involved.”

It comes after the broadcaster admitted to undeclared payments to Ryan Tubridy between 2017 and 2022.

On Thursday, RTÉ admitted to paying Ryan Tubridy €345,000 more than what it stated publicly it was paying him.

In a detailed statement, RTÉ said the money was paid between 2017 and 2022, and was above his annual published salary.

The payments were uncovered after a “transparency” issue about payments made to Mr Tubridy was identified during a routine audit of RTÉ’s 2022 accounts in March.

As a result, the broadcaster’s audit and risk committee commissioned Grant Thornton to carry out an independent fact-finding review into the issue.

The findings of that review were given to RTÉ last Friday and brought before the RTÉ board on Monday.

Mr Tubridy, who stepped down as host of the Late Late Show in May, was not on air for his RTÉ Radio 1 show on Friday morning. 

Meanwhile, former chairwoman of the RTÉ board, Moya Doherty, said she had no "knowledge of any issue relating to certain payments and the profoundly serious lack of transparency involved".

Ms Doherty said that "at no time" during her tenure did she or any other board members have knowledge of the payments.

"Up until I concluded my term as Chair in November, 2022, I was not made aware of the issue relating to these payments," she said in a statement. 

"I, and my colleagues on the board, should have been comprehensively briefed on all aspects of the payments and the manner in which they were dealt with in the accounts. The issue did not emerge until after an audit of the 2022 accounts.

The reputation of RTÉ has sadly been damaged and this most serious situation is deeply upsetting and unsettling for the many staff, in all aspects of the work of RTÉ who give their best to the national broadcaster with their talent and their commitment.

Sinn Féin Senator Lynn Boylan said that Ms Doherty's statement raises more questions than it answers.

If it is the case that the board did not know and they are as deeply shocked and frustrated by the revelations as the public are, then there are more questions to be answered, she said.

"Who did sign off on the deal? Who did know about it? And why were the board not informed?"