Taoiseach: Not 'credible' that only Dee Forbes knew about payments to Tubridy

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar: “Government expects nothing but full and open transparency from RTÉ executives and board members when they attend committees of these Houses today and tomorrow.”

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said that it is not “credible” that former RTÉ Director General Dee Forbes was the only person aware of hidden payments to Ryan Tubridy.

At Leaders’ Questions this afternoon, Mr Varadkar told the Dáil that there were still questions outstanding following RTÉ’s statement on payments to Mr Tubridy yesterday evening.

TDs and Senators are due to question seven RTÉ officials this afternoon at the Oireachtas Media Committee over the hidden payment of €345,000 to Mr Tubridy between 2017 and 2022. The meeting itself is due to begin at 1.30pm today.

“While the RTÉ statement from yesterday shed some light on what had transpired, a lot of questions remain open and we expect to see a full and open engagement at the Oireachtas committees today and tomorrow,” Mr Varadkar told the Dáil.

Certainly, we do not believe it is credible that the former DG Dee Forbes was the only person with knowledge of these events. 

Government expects nothing but full and open transparency from RTÉ executives and board members when they attend committees of these Houses today and tomorrow.” 

Questioning Mr Varadkar, Sinn Féin TD Pearse Doherty said that RTÉ had set up a “sweetheart deal” for Mr Tubridy and that it had been hidden from the public. In particular, Mr Doherty said that it was “not acceptable” that the public would have to wait another month for the publication of a Grant Thornton report on payments made to Mr Tubridy between 2017 and 2019.

Mr Varadkar agreed, telling the Dáil that it was “not satisfactory” and that Media Minister Catherine Martin would be engaging with RTÉ over the audit.

He also confirmed that the media minister would be meeting with members of RTÉ’s National Union of Journalists branch today, as well as with screenwriters who have worked with the broadcaster.