LAST UPDATE | 6 Jul 2023
RTÉ’S INCOMING DIRECTOR general has described today’s meeting with Media Minister Catherine Martin as “frank” and said plans to reconstitute the RTÉ executive board will begin on Monday.
Speaking after today’s meeting, incoming director general Kevin Bakhurst said he told Minister Martin about his plan for RTÉ’s “reconstitution”, which will be announced when he takes up the role of director general on Monday, 10 July.
The meeting with senior members of the RTÉ board into the ongoing payments controversy was due to happen tomorrow, but was brought forward a day by Minister Martin.
Martin met with incoming director general Kevin Bakhurst, chair of the RTÉ board Siún Ní Raghallaigh, and interim deputy director general Adrian Lynch at her Department.
“I just want to say to audiences of RTÉ, my job is to restore trust, clearly that’s been severely damaged, again, I apologise for that,” said Bakhurst.
“But that’s my job, to restore trust in this organisation. That’s what I’m trying to do and I’ll be setting out a lot more detail on Monday on how we intend to do that.”
He added that trust in RTÉ has been “severely diminished” and said it’s been “painful to watch” the “highly damaging few weeks for RTÉ”.
“I fully recognise that morale is on the floor and my priority next week is to get around the organisation and talk to staff and hear their concerns,” said Bakhurst.
Incoming DG Kevin Bakhurst said that trust in RTE has been severely diminished, and that the reconstitution of the executive board will begin on Monday, as soon as he starts. pic.twitter.com/5goEGJnXND
— Eimer McAuley (@eimer_mcauley) July 6, 2023
He added that he will meet with unions tomorrow if they are available.
Bakhurst also said that the “huge challenge” he faces “isn’t quite the challenge that I thought I was taking on when I took on this job”.
Speaking in the Seanad yesterday during a debate on capping RTÉ salaries in line with government ministers, Minister Martin expressed concern about the “deeply unsatisfactory nature in which information is being provided” by the RTÉ Executive Board.
Martin said RTÉ chair Ní Raghallaigh told her that this is “totally unacceptable” and that “swift action will be taken”.
Martin then informed the Seanad that her meeting with members of the RTÉ board would be brought forward to today.
In a statement following today’s meeting, Martin said she made it clear that she is “not satisfied with the way in which information has been provided to the RTÉ Board, to the public and to the Oireachtas”.
She also described the meeting as “frank” and added that the “drip feed of information over the past two weeks has been another blow to RTÉ and has caused untold harm”.
Martin expressed concern about staff morale at RTÉ and called on Bakhurst to work from “day one on Monday to change the tone and culture between the executive and the board and staff”.
“I stressed that the new DG must take immediate steps to publicly speak on Monday to the widening gulf between RTÉ and, its most important stakeholder, its audience,” said Martin.
The Media Minister added that she has been “reassured” that plans to reconstitute the executive board will be “addressed promptly” and welcomed Bakhurst’s invitation to meet with RTÉ trade unions.
The interim deputy director general of RTÉ yesterday expressed “profound regret” that standards of governance were “far lower than required” on a number of issues.
In his opening statement to the Oireachtas Media Committee yesterday, Adrian Lynch said: “I am acutely aware of the accusations of drip-feed, of non-cooperation and lack of transparency.
“We fully respect and understand this public concern, our staff’s concern, and the proper focus on accountability from the members of the Houses of the Oireachtas.”
Much of yesterday’s hearings focussed on the broadcaster’s use of commercial barter account transactions.
Barter accounts are commonplace in the media industry. They allow organisations to exchange advertising airtime that would otherwise go unsold in return for goods and services from companies.
RTÉ’s use of barter spending has come in for intense scrutiny since it emerged that €150,000 was paid to Ryan Tubridy through one such account, and that the payment was not properly declared.
RTÉ, which is sustained through public funds and commercial revenues, has also faced criticism for using barter transactions to spend hundreds of thousands of euro entertaining commercial clients, including on a trip to the Rugby World Cup in Japan.
Earlier today, Sinn Féin TD Brian Stanley, who chairs the Oireachtas parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC), said “substantial change” was required.
“Kevin Bakhurst comes in a couple of days’ time, the new director general, he needs to take decisive action,” Stanley told RTÉ Radio One.
“And I think one of the first things he needs to do is that he needs to ask some of the senior executives to stand to one side. Obviously, you want to keep them accountable, so that means keeping them on the payroll, unfortunately, keeping them as employees of it,” he said.
“But they do need to step to one side straightaway. That’s the minimum that’s required here.”
Speaking in the Seanad yesterday, Minister Martin added that information that has come to light in the past days have “only illustrated just how pervasive and deep-seated the governance and other failings in RTÉ have been”.
Martin said these revelations have led to the government initiating a “root and branch examination” into RTÉ.
This review will have two elements, the first being a review of RTÉ governance and culture, and the second a review of “contractor fees, human resources, and other matters”.
It will be overseen by two expert advisory committees and assisted by professional services and supported by a team drawn from the Department.
The professional services that will assist with the review were due to be appointed by the end of August.
However, Martin said yesterday that “in light of further developments and the urgency of the two reviews”, this timescale will be “accelerated even further”.
The procurement process for the appointment of a forensic accountant to examine the RTÉ books will also be accelerated, with a view to making an appointment next week.
In a statement today, Minister Martin said Bakhurst “committed to full cooperation with the independent, root and branch examination and the forensic accountant that will be appointed next week”.
-With additional reporting from Press Association
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