RTÉ admits paying Tubridy €345,000 more than declared

evolvingtipperary101

RTE tells Oireachtas Media Committee it spent €1.6m on client hospitality from three barter accounts between 2012-22 - it says it generated €1.65bn (a thousand times as much) in commercial income in that period.

It says €111,000 spent on travel to the 2019 Rugby World Cup was on clients who had spent €38m with RTE in 2018

If it generated over a well on the way to 2 billion in ten years, what the **** is going on in terms of an existential crisis? Why look for a license increase?

ebbsy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120806742#Comment_120806742

Reminds me of that scene in Naked Gun 3, in the jail.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120806745#Comment_120806745

Its an Open Secret in RTE about abusing tax payer money and nobody ever questions it as it is their right and culture.

HildaOgdenx

I hope that the TDs have their act together for tomorrow.

No grandstanding, ask clear concise questions. Wait for answers.

Probably too much to hope for though.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120806745#Comment_120806745

RTE is a financial instrument used to transfer wealth from the tax payer to the established legacy golden Blackrock FF circle?

ButtersSuki

I just want to come back to comments I made about Richard Collins last Sunday, namely:

“I don't want to sound like this is a personal attack on Richard Collins because he was by no means the only bad performer at the PAC meetings last week but I cannot understand how anyone's first job as a CFO can be with a company with as big as RTE. Normally for roles at that level you hire serious, senior, experienced people with impressive CVs, experience at that level, and in total command of their brief and their department - his performance last week did not indicate anything of the sort. Whilst every CFO has a first time in that kind of role, it's normally at a much smaller company where you learn the trade and then graduate to a bigger company performing the same role. I have never in my life seen someone take a career leap like that into such a big role and with such huge responsibility being granted to a novice. That this is his first CFO role beggars belief - I simply do not believe he was the best candidate for the job as there had to have been other people with actual CFO experience who applied for that role - it's not like the package wasn't attractive.”

I work at Director Level, I have for approx. a decade now. I have never seen or heard of anyone getting a CFO position (or any Director/Executive position for that matter) in an organization the size of RTÉ as their first CFO role - and this is his first CFO role. He has worked in other senior finance roles, but never as a CFO.

That struck and strikes me as very weird - on both sides.

Firstly, why would an organization as big as RTÉ hire a new CFO with no history of operating at that level previously? Did no other current (at the time) CFOs apply? I would be astonished if that were the case.

Now there’s one caveat here - if he was say Head of Finance or Director of Finance in RTÉ (or another broadcaster) and had years of relevant industry experience before getting the CFO role I could possible understand it - but coming from a grocery retailer???? It stinks tbh.

Secondly, why would someone not at CFO level say “I’ve never worked at CFO levell, but do you know where would be a good place to start? No, not a small to medium sized company, let’s just in at the deep-end and join a huge semi state with thousands of suppliers and all sorts of commercial interests and contracts in an area and industry - based on my CV - that I know nothing about! Sounds like a plan!”. Not exactly credible is it?

A CFO job description at this level in an organization of this size (not to mention being a semi state) would almost certainly have as a requirement “x number of years operating at a CFO level”. He did not meet that basic criteria - if it existed of course.

I have worked in some very large companies. The CFO has always been what I would call a “Rottweiler” personality type, namely a very confident, highly polished, blunt and forceful personality type - but always with absolute command of their position. The type of personality and person you’d almost be afraid to even think about sneaking in a coffee receipt that was actually with your friend and not work-related etc. This type of personality alone ensures a certain degree of “compliance” when spending the company’s money.

Collins - on the evidence we saw last week, is not that type. He is also clearly not in command of his brief. The latest revelations make his position - in my opinion - untenable. I can tell you without absolute confidence if a hidden account was discovered in the company I work for, the CFO wouldn’t even bother coming into work the next day and his resignation letter would be on the CEO’s desk first thing the next morning.

If I were on the PAC I’d be asking RTÉ HR for all notes of all interviews and accompanying CVs of ALL candidates for that hire.

This “it was hidden from him” excuse simply doesn’t wash. He’s the CFO FFS! The discovery of one account should have curtains for him, the discovery of additional accounts is terminal. He should resign immediately. If he thinks he got a hard time last week, he’s going to get that x10 if he appears again.

#JustSayin’

Extra: I’ve amended a couple of typos from my original post - the perils of using an iPhone and it’s auto fill typing features after midnight when you’re exhausted….🙄

skimpydoo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120806538#Comment_120806538

Paddy Cosgrave has.

Iecrawfc

As more revelations come out, more people will be cancelling their license direct debit or renewals. To think of all the years they pleaded financial constraints to cancel children's shows, sporting highlights, trying to close lyric fm etc. and tried to get the license fee increased.

All the while a select few have been using the license fee as a slush fund to live it up on taxpayers coin, it started out with Turbrity but at this rate it will end with the for sale sign outside Montrose and the lawyers rubbing their hands with glee on the prospect of a tribunal.

Seeking like it couldn't happen to a more entitled bunch though, 'FAS II'

evolvingtipperary101

RTÉ said it earned over €8 million in revenues from barter agencies from the end of 2012 to 2022. The station goes on to claim that barter credits not used were cashed out resulting in RTÉ generating additional revenue of €5.6 million which it claims it would not have had without the barter model

evolvingtipperary101

It has been reported that RTÉ spent as much €2m on the failed musical – although some insiders believe it could be up to €3m and they further claim the losses from it are significant.

RTÉ has not been able to provide details on expenditure on the musical due to “ongoing financial verification” and said these records would be supplied “as early as possible”.

RTÉ rented out space at Croke Park for six weeks last year for rehearsals for its box-office flop Toy Show: The Musical.

There is growing political concern over the money spent by the embattled broadcaster on the stage spin-off of The Late Late Toy Show, which ran at the 2,000-seater Convention Centre last December. The show received poor reviews and failed to sell out.

New barter accounts only just discovered are believed to be linked to the musical.

Rubberchikken

The more I read about this the more I dispair. Not only were the people at the top in rte, including board and executive board, unsuited to positions of responsibility, they're being shown to be arrogant,self serving and completely untrustworthy.

Btw I'm starting to feel like vomiting every time I hear the words trust and or transparent being used in the media

I would like these people from rte to stop lying and give a decent shot at telling the truth for once.

They are a shameful bunch

bucketybuck

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120806772#Comment_120806772

Sure lads.

Just like if I sold €5k worth of goods for €3k cash then that means I made the company an extra €3k, doesn't it...

kneemos

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120806772#Comment_120806772

If they spend over a million a day how many minutes would 8 million cover over ten years?

gifted

Top 100 earners....first place earns 515,000

Person in 100th place earns just under 117,000

No names given...

It looks like the place is full of Marie Antoinettes....reeks of let them eat cake attitudes.

TinyMuffin

RTE. Supporting the Arts.

Artistic ways of screwing us.

Man Vs ManUre

Looking forward to the massacre today on RTÉ news from 1pm onwards.

Jinglejangle69

FAS

FAI

Charity organisations

RTE

The list is endless, we really are a corrupt little country.

Id say NGOs will be next. Absolutely milking the tax payer and we know nothing about their accounts.

Cluedo Monopoly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120806727#Comment_120806727

Good man. Resend those emails and ask why they were ignored. It will spook them.

screamer

I’m fed up of listening to the phrase the politicians are using RTE will survive it must survive…… that is just to me saying well, doesn’t matter what happened business as usual. No wonder it’s a law unto itself with a typical public sector attitude.

oh yes and never forget Truth Matters, and we’ve gotten a whole lot of that haven’t we??

gmisk

So a letter from Dee promising no cuts to Tubridys salary for 5 years, yeah they are gonna do their best to hang anything the can on her.

TooTired123

Part of Tubridys demands must have been written confirmation that he is guaranteed he wouldn’t even be asked to take a pay cut for the duration of his contract. Dee Forbes herself was happy to provide that.

Precious little boy really valued himself, didn’t he?

Penn

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120807016#Comment_120807016

And it was addressed directly to him rather than through his agent, so he can't claim ignorance about it either. He wanted his extra money guaranteed by RTE over and above his published public salary.

brokenbad

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120806990#Comment_120806990

Throw in the following also:

The Gardai

GAA

Catholic Church

Politicians

ButtersSuki

I’d imagine a few people who were at the PAC and remained quiet when the CFO answered “no” to “are there any other barter accounts in existence?” (or whatever the question was) had a difficult night’s sleep.

Lying by omission, or staying silent when your colleague is knowingly or unknowingly (as the guy seems clueless) saying there are no other accounts will not be looked on kindly, to put it mildly.

evolvingtipperary101

Finance minister Michael McGrath is relating his experience of 'barter accounts' which he describes as contra accounts.

Contra accounts are common and are run by organisations themselves, not third parties like Astus, and there's no cash-discount malarkey.

PAC shouldn’t overlook the Sunday Times claims that RTE/Deloitte first became aware of Tubridy’s 2017-19 salary being underdeclared three years ago.

What ex-RTE chief financial officer Breda O'Keeffe did next after leaving RTE in March 2020...

Joined board of Abbey Theatre in March 2020, where there were controversial payoffs & other issues which led to resignations in 2021, including that of .... Breda O'Keeffe.

Karppi

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120807084#Comment_120807084

Exactly. The odd squeak bum moment, for sure.

evolvingtipperary101

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120807084#Comment_120807084

I wonder if someone met him at a Renault event or Riverdance and when he said he didn’t know what a barter account was or he wasn’t sure what his salary was - they asked, do you want a job at RTE?

Montage of Feck

The most scandalous thing has just emerged! The LLS country and western special is to remain, ffs just gut the place now.

ZookeeperDub

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120806990#Comment_120806990

NGOs have nothing to do with Ireland. The "milking the tax payer" is a load of rubbish. One loop hole which was used years ago and now closed.

Trying to drag international companies into the same conversation as Irish companies is totally incorrect. They have all real auditors and not as much "you rub my back and I rub yours"

Plenty more to add to the list above but I think you will find the "charities" if they ever got fully reviewed would be shocking what is going on with them and the Irish government is handing them millions of tax payers money every year.

Looking at NGOs and complaining about companies giving jobs is just begrudging people who work in them. You should be looking at the charities and figure out what they do each year with the millions.

Floppybits

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120806990#Comment_120806990

And you can bet all of them are crammed with cronys of the political parties as rewards for helping the party.