The absence of a reason why the broadcaster failed to disclose large payments to its highest earner will be a lightning rod during the Oireachtas committee hearings to be held into the controversy
But his fundamental conclusion is clear enough: “No member of the RTÉ executive board, other than the director general, had all the necessary information in order to understand that the publicly declared figures for Ryan Tubridy could have been wrong.”
Not only was the Tubridy deal with Renault Ireland “cost neutral” to the car company, the State broadcaster turns out to have borne an additional €30,586 for the costs of delayed commercial sponsor events in 2022 for which Tubridy received €75,000 in 2020. The actual cost recorded in RTÉ's barter account was €47,477.
Neither was he named in the “barter account” through which the payments were processed. Tubridy was described only as “the talent” in the report by Jacobs, just as the description “the talent agent” was applied to his agent Noel Kelly. Forbes, who declined to comment last night on RTÉ's statement or the findings by Jacobs, seems to see little reason for anxiety in not describing the fees correctly.
In effect there were two deals: the “five-year contract” between RTÉ and Tubridy and a “tripartite agreement” between Tubridy, Renault and RTÉ. The Renault arrangement came after the then RTÉ chief financial officer Breda O’Keeffe set out “a financial proposal to the agent” which included “a possible additional commercial agreement”, which became the tripartite deal.
His statement adds: “The commercial director has stated that [her] knowledge of those matters was limited to the instructions received by her from the director general in connection with the payments in question.”
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