James O'Connor
Question:63. Deputy James O'Connor asked the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media for an update on discussions with RTÉ. [53643/23]
View answerTuesday, 5 December 2023
Questions (63)
Written answers
My primary relationship is with the Chair of the Board of RTÉ, and since the crisis arose in June, I have held face to face meeting with her on six occasions, most recently on 9th November, as well as a number of phone conversations. The Director General has attended all but the first of these meetings.
These engagements have taken place in the context of the various completed and ongoing reviews and enquiries, such as the reports from Grant Thornton, any new issues or details which have come to light including through hearings at Oireachtas Committees, and measures being taken by the Board to address the issues.
In particular, my discussions have centred on progress being made on:
• the two Grant Thornton reports, commissioned by RTÉ, which have been published to date, revealing significant failings in governance and culture in RTÉ and providing an important basis to understand what happened in RTÉ;
• progress on the completion of, the third Grant Thornton Report, commissioned by RTÉ, which will shed light on the process used to govern and approve Toy Show The Musical and on the report in respect of voluntary redundancies being conducted by McCann Fitzgerald;
• Mazars' interim report, which I published on 25 August 2023, examining the barter and other-off balance sheet accounts of RTÉ, and the expansion of Mazars’ terms of reference which I announced in October; and
• updates on other actions and measures taken by RTÉ to address the failings in oversight and governance which have come to light.
My officials also continue to engage with the Director General and other members of the Senior Leadership team on these and related matters.
As outlined in my reply to Deputy Smyth earlier, I also met the Director General and Chair on 9th November last to be briefed on RTÉ’s recently published Strategic Vision. I welcome the Strategic Vision and believe it demonstrates a renewed commitment to public service broadcasting, and addresses key areas such as governance reforms and cost efficiencies. This is vital as RTÉ seeks to rebuild the trust and confidence of the Government, the Houses of the Oireachtas, the Irish public and its own employees.
Question No. 64 answered orally.