Watch: RTÉ board chair asked Dee Forbes to resign on June 16

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The chair of the RTÉ board asked for Director General Dee Forbes to step down on June 16, six days before the scandal around overpayments to Ryan Tubridy became public.

Siún Ní Raghallaigh told Fine Gael TD Brendan Griffin that she had asked for Ms Forbes to step down after receiving a report from Grant Thornton which suggested the move.

The comments come in contrast to an earlier comment by Ms Ní Raghallaigh that she only accepted Ms Forbes' resignation because the former Director General had released a media statement announcing her immediate resignation on Monday.

The move meant that Ms Forbes could not be compelled to attend Oireachtas committees.

Loyalty bonus

A €120,000 loyalty bonus which had been due to Ryan Tubridy but was not paid "for some reason" is under investigation, TDs and senators have been told.

RTÉ Chief Financial Officer Richard Collins told the Oireachtas Media Committee that the understated amounts paid to Mr Tubridy were "an adjustment to figures".

“This was an adjustment that was made to the figures. Basically, in short, Ryan Tubridy was due a loyalty bonus at the end of his contract of €120,000.

"That was never paid, was never accrued from the accounts, but for an unexplained reason that €120,000 was credited against his earnings between 2017 and 2019. That’s under investigation at the moment by Grant Thornton.” RTÉ's Economics Correspondent Robert Shortt, who is the staff representative on the RTÉ Audit board, told the committee that staff were "angered" by what has happened at the station.

“We also had the protests yesterday, but my colleagues are also acutely aware of the need to keep doing their jobs, and they’re committed to keep doing their jobs. I think that’s going to be a key part of rebuilding trust in RTÉ.”

'Egregious breach of trust'

In her opening statement to the committee, RTÉ chair Siún Ní Raghallaigh apologised "for this egregious breach of trust with the public" and that the committee, and others, "were in the past presented with information that was simply untrue".

"That was a breach of trust with you, the elected members of the Oireachtas, for which we sincerely apologise."

Representatives were invited to the committee to discuss the revelations last week that the pay Mr Tubridy received was far above that which was publicly published.

Ms Ní Raghallaigh told the committee that the public, RTÉ staff, and public representatives "are angry and hurt" and that the board knows "that our bond of trust with the public is tarnished".

"We know that trust is precious, and that once lost, trust is difficult to regain. Step by step we will work to rebuild that trust. We will not flinch in this regard. We know that this will be challenging, but we are committed to doing so, in order that confidence in Ireland’s national public service broadcaster can be restored. We are committed to providing you with as much detail as possible and we wish to be as open and frank as we can."

She added that in late March of this year during a routine audit of RTÉ’s 2022 accounts, an issue was identified in relation to the transparency of "certain payments". 

The auditors sought further information and informed the Audit and Risk Committee of the RTÉ Board of their concerns, who commissioned Grant Thornton to carry out the independent fact-finding review.

The facts were established by Grant Thornton and presented to the Audit and Risk Committee of the RTÉ Board on Friday June 16 and then to the RTÉ Board the following Monday June 19.

"On receiving the Grant Thornton findings, the Board asked RTÉ to conduct an internal review of earnings paid to Mr Tubridy in previous years, and through that review it was identified that Mr Tubridy’s remuneration had been understated by RTÉ by a figure of €120,000 over the contract period of 2017-2019. 

"To be clear, this was understated in the figures that were published by RTÉ relating to the top 10 highest earning on air presenters, which in turn were communicated to Government and the Oireachtas and to the public. 

Mr Tubridy’s earnings were correctly accounted for in the RTÉ accounts, and the earnings he received were what he was contractually entitled to. In addition, for the record, I want to confirm that he did not receive an exit fee.

She added that why this figure was understated - and by whom - "is the question we as a Board are also very anxious to know the answer to".

"This issue has remained under active review and yesterday RTÉ issued a further statement, detailing its understanding of what happened, how it happened, and who was responsible for different aspects of the arrangement.

"I also wish at this point to acknowledge the upset and distress being caused to the independent production sector in Ireland, a community I know well. Their wellbeing is very much contingent on the wellbeing of RTÉ also. As I have said previously, RTÉ is an organisation of more than 1,800 people. I apologise to each and every one of them for the distress they are experiencing as they deal with the shadow that has fallen over this organisation.

"I want to assure this committee and the public that the Board is committed to ensuring that we get full clarity on this, that there is accountability for it, and that it never happens again. In conclusion I wish to say that today we will endeavour, to the very best of our ability, to answer, all questions you may put to us. As public representatives you deserve nothing less."

On Tuesday, a nine-page statement from interim deputy director general Adrian Lynch Lynch said that only ex-director general Dee Forbes had all the information available about the payments to Mr Tubridy.

It added that Mr Tubridy had not been made aware that RTÉ issued a credit note to Renault as part of the deal, and likewise that the Grant Thornton investigation commissioned into the payments had made “no finding of wrongdoing” on the part of either Renault or Mr Tubridy.

The statement said that legal advice, on foot of the Grant Thornton report, showed there was “no illegality” involved, and payments were made pursuant to an agreed contract.

As outlined in the report, when Mr Tubridy’s newest contract was being negotiated in early 2020, it was at a time when RTÉ was looking to cut the pay of its top stars by 15%.

An agreement was reached whereby commercial partner Renault would make payments of €75,000 to Mr Tubridy for contracted appearances, but Mr Tubridy’s agent, Noel Kelly, negotiated a deal whereby RTÉ would underwrite and guarantee these payments.

Mr Lynch said the series of €75,000 payments were negotiated by “the director general and the then-chief financial officer, supported by the RTÉ solicitor” and were then approved by Ms Forbes.

He said there was “significant pushback” by RTÉ over the provision to underwrite the €75,000. When Renault ceased its commercial partnership, RTÉ was contractually obliged to cover these payments. It was invoiced for two separate payments in 2022, and this was paid through its barter account, with a description of “consultancy fees” listed on the invoices. This was queried by auditors in March, the same month Mr Tubridy said he was stepping down from The Late Late Show, and revealed to the public last week.

Ms Forbes resigned with immediate effect from RTÉ on Monday, after a suspension from her role, which she had been due to leave at the start of July, last week. She said in her statement on Monday that she "did not at any stage act contrary to any advice".

She added that the RTÉ board had not treated her “with anything approaching the levels of fairness, equity and respect that anyone should expect as an employee, a colleague or a person”.

Ms Forbes has not appeared before the Media Committee, citing "health reasons".

RTÉ officials will also appear before a meeting of the PAC on Thursday. Ms Forbes will not be in attendance.

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