RTE director general Kevin Bakhurst is seeking legal advice on disclosing the individual exit packages of former RTE executive members, the media minister has said.
Catherine Martin said she spoke to Mr Bakhurst on Thursday after it was revealed that a 450,000 euro exit package was given to a former RTE chief financial officer.
The value of the payment to Breda O’Keeffe came to light as RTE executives and board members appeared before the Oireachtas Media Committee on Wednesday following the publication of two reports – one that looked at two voluntary exit schemes at RTE and one that looked at Toy Show The Musical.
The exit package has been widely criticised, with Tanaiste Micheal Martin saying it should be “reassessed”.
A spokesperson for the minister for tourism, culture, arts, gaeltacht, sport and media said: “Minister Martin spoke to Mr Bakhurst this afternoon by phone.
“She emphasised the need for maximum transparency, particularly in respect of exit packages.
“As this concerns public funding, and transparency is in the public interest, she believes this is of paramount importance as we seek to rebuild trust in the national broadcaster and ultimately in public service media.
“He has committed to seeking updated legal advice in relation to the disclosure of details of individual exit packages.”
It emerged during the committee that Rory Coveney, the former director of strategy at RTE who was behind the flop Toy Show The Musical, and Richard Collins, the former RTE chief financial officer, both received exit packages from RTE.
During the committee hearing, Mr Bakhurst refused to give details of Mr Coveney’s and Mr Collin’s exit packages, citing legal constraints.
On Thursday, Mr Martin said the 450,000 euro exit package given to Ms O’Keeffe should be “reassessed”.
The Fianna Fail leader said that if the exit package is found to be too high, then anything above the proper package should be “handed back”.
In response to the revelation, Mr Martin said that the absence of transparency on the exit package has been “quite shocking”.
“In my view, any redundancy package should be within the framework of the existing schemes within RTE and within the procedures that the organisation administers,” Mr Martin said on Thursday.
“I find it difficult to comprehend how packages are agreed without the approval of the board or the executive at the time and not in alignment with the agreed procedures.
Public confidence in RTÉ has never been lower.
The fact that people who were involved in the recent financial scandals are still members of the RTÉ Executive Board, will do nothing to build trust in the national broadcaster.
The public wants to see real, urgent reform now! pic.twitter.com/rBllecuFFe
— Sinn Féin (@sinnfeinireland) February 15, 2024
“What I believe should happen is that the particular package should be reassessed in the context of the agreed procedures and then the issue is resolved that way.
“In other words, if the amount is far too high in respect of agreed procedures then the proper package should then be identified and the remainder handed back.”
Tanaiste Leo Varadkar said that if proper procedures were not followed by RTE, then the money should be returned.
“I think the whole revelation is very damaging for RTE. I think there are few people in the country who could even imagine getting a pay off of 450,000 euros,” Mr Varadkar told 98FM.
“It’s quite a damaging revelation I think for RTE. What has to be established now is whether proper procedures were followed or not, and if in any way proper procedures weren’t followed by RTE then I think it should be returned.”
Mr Martin also said it was important that the former board members who did not appear at the Oireachtas committee make themselves available.
He added: “I think where ill health is an issue you have to respect that. However, I would obviously say to people that going before the committee matters and I think it’s important for the public to generate confidence but also in terms of accountability.
“Equally, I think the Oireachtas committee also need to be conscious of people’s rights.
“We’ve had experiences in the past that have not been good enough… which have ended up in the courts and still are in the courts.
“I think so far this committee is working well.”
Speaking in the Dail, Sinn Fein’s Pearse Doherty said the redundancy package was “cooked up” between Ms O’Keeffe and former RTE director general Dee Forbes.
“A golden handshake to the value of 10 times the average salary in this state, cooked up behind closed doors with no sign off, no tax paid, no disclosure until yesterday,” Mr Doherty said.
“You couldn’t make it up. It is damning and people are sick to their back teeth at what is going on and what has gone on in RTE.”
He also said that Mr Coveney was given a “secret golden handshake” when he left the organisation.
“We don’t know the details of this. Do you Tanaiste?” he asked. “And if not, will your Government demand this information from RTE? And how many others have received secret golden handshakes in the last period?”
Mr Martin said: “It is unacceptable what has happened, there should be no secrecy in respect of any package that any executive received from RTE.
“RTE had controls, RTE had procedures, they clearly were not adhered to in this one particular case, it seems pretty clear.
“I don’t have any details of any package, either in respect to Mr Coveney, who you referenced. I don’t have that package. You kind of slyly insinuated I might. I don’t.”
Labour leader Ivana Bacik said that the public had a right to be shocked that Ms Forbes signed off on the 450,000 euro payout.
“Far too many of those who keep the lights on and the cameras rolling at RTE are denied a fair wage, a pension, holiday and maternity leave because they’re trapped on bogus self-employment contracts. And that’s the reality,” Ms Bacik added.
“Yet these workers’ rights issues are not receiving enough scrutiny. Instead, our time has been preoccupied by what our colleague Senator Marie Sherlock has rightly described as the upstairs downstairs culture that prevails at RTE and the indefensible conduct of a few at the top.
“Yesterday’s committee appearances confirmed that people were shocked, rightly, at the revelation that the former director general of RTE signed off on a 450,000 euro retirement payment to the former chief financial officer Breda O’Keeffe.”
