Dee Forbes banging the RTE TV licence drum again 60m uncollected fee *poll not working - pl ignore*

Baba Yaga

at this stage i dont think rte could host a good shite without it costing millions…

odyssey06

I expect if we did win, and Belfast \ BBC co-production not a runner - the Government would step in with a once off subvention covering the cost of the Eurovision, turn it into a "Gathering" type tourism promoting event.

Damien360

Ireland is not winning the Eurovision so don’t be worrying about hosting the thing next year.

RoTelly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122092855#Comment_122092855

Shared Tourism etc etc

Anyway AFAIK "the big five" now pay for most of the Eurovision, its just hosted by the winning country, I don't think "SVT" in Sweden carry the massive burden of hosting the event, I am not sure how it works but I don't think the host country is a Financially open to the event as RTÉ had been in the 1970s (1 out of 10), 1980s (2 out of 10) and 1990s (4 out of 10).

Still like Bishop Brennan RTÉ need a good kick up the arse…. **** it, the government should turn to TG4 and let them host it in Galway, by way of stepping in with a once of subvention…. even worst give the money to Virgin Media TV!

Either way I just want to see RTÉ shamed because I see all of this being massively being brushed under the carpet.

You know RTÉ talk about people being proud again of RTÉ, I am sorry but did they notice the uptake of cable in the country or the aerials point to NI and Wales, I wonder why people did that, because they were so satisfied at a 5 O'Clock start to RTÉ! "Oh but we've no money" same old **** story from RTÉ.

RoTelly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122092924#Comment_122092924

I don't we will make it into the Final but I hope I am wrong and you are wrong, not out of want to win the Eurovision but to put the boot in.

The scene in father ted where the Producer is popping champagne is RTÉ on everything Comedy (pop the champagne we don't have to produce comedy Channel 4 will do it for us, you know they were offered Father Ted 😉 )

RoTelly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122089898#Comment_122089898

So they made a change to the report: -

Payments were made to former RTÉ presenter Ryan Tubridy through the barter account in 2022. The use of the barter account meant the cost to RTÉ was more than €230,000.

It will be interesting to see if it turns out when the report is published that Tubs got 300k and not 150k and this is just for 2022, what happened in 2021?

From the Irish Times (also not how they retain the idea that in effect Renault paid the first 75k, when Renault paid RTÉ meaning it became RTÉ money and then when to Tubs). Sorry it say in effect RTÉ paid it because the gave the credit note to Renault for advertising, even without it they paid Tubs.

The question then is did RTÉ wait until 2022 to make 2 150k payments, and up to 2020 they didn't use the barter account for such transactions in 2020 or 2021?

csirl

Om the Eurovision, is the reason a lot of other tv stations wont vote for us due to them being exposed to the callibre of executivre from RTE that we've seen exposed?

RoTelly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122093697#Comment_122093697

The DG of Eurovision (aka EBU) is the former DG of RTÉ Noel Curran, and Husband to a Eurovision winner! So no! He prob had a convo with Kevin B, "I'll fix the result Kevin, just like the old days when you were my Deputy".

MrMusician18

Looks like they're kite flying the rte funding solution this weekend. A revenue collected fee but reduced from €160 and a top up exchequer payment.

I'm not happy at all with that - worst of all worlds.

RoTelly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122097299#Comment_122097299

It is the strangest thing I have heard. Reduce the fee from €160, to what? and how much of a top up? Where does An Post sit with all of this, Mr. McRedmond is very quite on his inability to collect the fee that he want to control.

Tow

Dee not available to 'help' with report on RTE Allowances.

"The allowances include payments to staff for long service, acting up in senior roles and what are described in the report as a “role-related allowance”. The report also found allowances can vary from permanent to temporary payments and can apply to entire sections, or on an individual basis to certain staff members."

"Ms Forbes has refused to cooperate with any of the reviews into her time as director general, citing an on-going illness as preventing her from answering questions."

https://m.independent.ie/irish-news/report-queries-4m-paid-to-top-up-salaries-of-760-rte-staff/a115880274.html

NIMAN

How can an illness prevent you from answering a few questions?

Unless it's affecting your mouth working.

Absolute chancer of the highest order, and symptomatic of all that's wrong in the likes of rte. Pity people couldn't legally have their pensions etc stopped until they cooperate.

Brendan Bendar

RTE was always a cesspit of 'obscure practices' kept firmly within the organisation, and those eating at the top table and the ancillary players.

Place should have been 'scoped out' long ago.

fplfan12345

No reason it will stop either.

Completely disgraceful but willingly accepted by the Irish public.

There was zero deterrent for her to do whatever she wanted to do in her role at RTE.

Potential-Monke

Baffles me there isn't a full on fraud investigation at this point. Harris is in their pockets, it's in the publics interest for an investigation to be completed on RTE so will never happen. At the very least, it's False Accounting:

	False accounting.	10.—(1) A person is guilty of an offence if he or she dishonestly, with the intention of making a gain for himself or herself or another, or of causing loss to another—
		(a) destroys, defaces, conceals or falsifies any account or any document made or required for any accounting purpose,
		(b) fails to make or complete any account or any such document, or
		(c) in furnishing information for any purpose produces or makes use of any account, or any such document, which to his or her knowledge is or may be misleading, false or deceptive in a material particular.
		(2) For the purposes of this section a person shall be treated as falsifying an account or other document if he or she—
		(a) makes or concurs in making therein an entry which is or may be misleading, false or deceptive in a material particular, or
		(b) omits or concurs in omitting a material particular therefrom.
		(3) A person guilty of an offence under this section is liable on conviction on indictment to a fine or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 10 years or both.

Damien360

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122101569#Comment_122101569

It fixes nothing. The waste will continue

fplfan12345

Hopefully people will vote accordingly at the next general election.

fritzelly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122101569#Comment_122101569

That wouldn't make the slightest bit of difference to peoples objections to paying the licence - 10/20 euro is neither here not there

RoTelly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122102024#Comment_122102024

I imagine that is what will be offered to the public.

Also is RTÉ fit for purpose. Regardless of how we pay for it. The funding really changes nothing. nearly 50% is funding via the exchequer, in 2022 the NSO move over the NCH, did you see any improvements in RTÉ in 2022?

Loafing Oaf

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122102002#Comment_122102002

If the current government does get around to bringing in a new funding system, I find it hard to imagine the next one reopening the issue, given how reluctant successive governments have been to address it.

Furze99

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122097299#Comment_122097299

Absolutely - that would be a disgraceful fudge. And frankly open the prospect of a nice continuing slush fund for the public broadcaster with little or no accountability to the levied public. The quid pro quo from RTE would be to consolidate their role of a government information service. The politicians might argue that the public would still be majority funders but if it's a Revenue collected levy, that's twisting the arms of the public at the same time.

If RTE is to be supported it should either be a) entirely by the taxpayer and let that be 100% clear or b) entirely by licence fees with accountability to the public. No commercial revenue raising.

political analyst

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122102916#Comment_122102916

Mícheál Martin said the licence fee is necessary to ensure RTÉ's independence. There is no evidence that the government wants RTÉ to be a Soviet bloc-style state broadcaster or that the additional public funding will be a 'slush fund'. If a commission that is a buffer between RTÉ and the government oversees the media fund then I don't see what the problem is.

Brendan Bendar

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122102916#Comment_122102916

Absolutely….that would be gelding the taxpayer and buttressing RTE into a nice cosy fortress where the taxpayer

has no way of getting at them and making their feelings known.

And another thing …why does 'the talents' pay have to be linked with civil service pay, as is been mooted.

The job descriptions and competencies are entirely different .

What RTE need to do is use the Irish situation and conditions as a benchmark and when the current contracts expire

make an offer take it or leave it . There are far too many of these 'allowances' which need to be cleaned up and regularised.

Furze99

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122103026#Comment_122103026

You're supporting the idea of a licence fee that is compulsory. That is tax by any other description. It's a fig leaf to dress it as anything else and an insult to the publics intelligence.

political analyst

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122103092#Comment_122103092

There's no evidence that households who have neither a TV set nor internet access would be expected to pay the licence fee under the government's plan.

jackofalltrades

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122103103#Comment_122103103

Where did you read that people with an internet connection would have to pay a TV licence fee?

Damien360

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122103237#Comment_122103237

The whole stick about the licence fee, before Tubs was a story, was each household would be charged because you can access via multiple methods.

So revenue was always preferred as the vehicle so I assume similar to your LPT property tax.

Because that will give 100% compliance, that should be a much lower charge than €160 but I feel that should be all they get. Not a top up so the incompetence and lack of governance continues unchecked. This method does not solve the central issue. As it happens there is a much bigger story in the state so this will get lost in the news and nobody will say boo.

Gusser09

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122092855#Comment_122092855

Wont be a thing. Have you seen the weird act that is representing ireland. A

odyssey06

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122103289#Comment_122103289

It's a hypothetical… and iirc we've sent some very 'normal' acts that didn't get anywhere, maybe time for something different.