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

He stated himself that there wasn't any negotiation.

Ermm no - if your minimum is I need this much to do the job to give up my other stuff they should have said fine, we'll get someone else - this is a magazine show at best, it's a filler show to 10am, no way deserving of 150k.

Really its a 50-60k (very good wage for the hours) intro show for someone getting in to the business

Okay, I've had it. I've been compliant for years but I will be rounding down my TV license payment to zero from now on.

Rounding down from €450k to €400k 🤣🤣🤣🤡🤡

Tear it down.

A list of Executives that left RTÉ during Dee Forbes Reign.

1. 2016 Kevin Bakhurst (Deputy Director General, MD News and Current Affairs, Acting DG before arrival of Dee Forbes)
2. 2016 Glen Killane (Director of TV)
3. 2017 Múirne Laffan (Chief Digital Officer)
4. 2018 Willie O'Reilly (Director of Commercial)
5. 2018 Brian Dalton (Director of Corporate Development)
6. 2018 Frances Abeton (Director of Operations and Production Services)
7. 2020 Breda O'Keefe (CFO)
8. 2022 Jon Williams (MD News and Current Affairs)

If I am reading 2017 annual report correctly no "termination benefits" were paid in 2016.

It will put Bakhurst in a very bad position if he took a golden handshake when he left to go to OfCom in 2016. 2017 AR suggests he did not receive such a payment nor did Glen Killane.

I also believe its not just Senior executives that would have got this type of treatment, Bill Malone former Controller of RTÉ2 moved to TV3 in 2016, leading Adrian Lynch to become control of RTÉ ONE and 2, up until Glen Killane left, and he was put in as Director of Channels, Audiences and Marketing.

Lads I can’t understand why anyone is surprised by what’s being unearthed from the silos of Montrosia.

Theres lads and lassies who ‘got in’ and thought they had arrived into the ‘ chocolate factory’ and proceeded to ‘bathe their feet’ as

everyone else seemed to be doing.

This ‘ligger’ mentality is endemic in the place and goes far beyond senior management. Make no mistake about that.

Lot of bull being spaffed out about low paid workers, there’s nobody working in the Pink Palace on less than other comparable industries.

Let’s put that one to bed kinda rapid, otherwise hoy up the comparisons so John. Q can have a gander???

Gow an ouda datt…..

On "termination benefits"

going quickly back

2015 nil

2014 nil

2013 200k

2012 900k

2011 0

2010 50k

Kevin has issued another statement to

"clarify" things

Coveney prob got 1 years salary

Collins payoff is secret

This should be revealed as it is essentially public money they are giving away.

RTÉ Director General Kevin Bakhurst has

issued a statement on the departures

of some senior executives at the

broadcaster.

Mr Bakhurst said former Director of

Commercial Geraldine O'Leary and

ex-Director of Legal Affairs Paula Mullooly

did not receive exit payments.

Former Director of Strategy Rory Coveney

did receive an exit payment.

Mr Bakhurst said RTÉ's former Chief

Financial Officer Richard Collins departed

RTÉ "by mutual agreement, with a binding

confidentiality clause that was agreed

to by both sides and in the interest of

fairness and respect cannot be breached."

He said: "As I have stated already, RTÉ has

previously received legal advice that it is

restricted from providing details regarding

the departures of individuals from RTÉ

"This advice was shared with both the

Public Accounts Commitee and the Joint

Oireachtas Committee.

"However, in the interests of transparency

I can clarify matters with regard to the

exits of the four executives who departed

RTÉ after I started as Director General, and

I am doing so with their agreement

"Geraldine 0'Leary retired from RTÉ, and

her role as Director of Commercial, and did

not receive an exit payment.

"Paula Mullooly decided to leave RTÉ, and

her role as Director of Legal Affairs, to

pursue another opportunity and did not

receive an exit payment.

Mr Bakhurst said RTÉ's former Chief

Financial Officer Richard Collins departed

RTÉ "by mutual agreement, with a binding

confidentiality clause that was agreed

to by both sides and in the interest of

fairness and respect cannot be breached."

He said: "As I have stated already, RTÉ has

previously received legal advice that it is

restricted from providing details regarding

the departures of individuals from RTÉ

"This advice was shared with both the

Public Accounts Commitee and the Joint

Oireachtas Committee.

"However, in the interests of transparency

I can clarify matters with regard to the

exits of the four executives who departed

RTÉ after I started as Director General, and

I am doing so with their agreement

"Geraldine 0'Leary retired from RTÉ, and

her role as Director of Commercial, and did

not receive an exit payment.

"Paula Mullooly decided to leave RTÉ, and

her role as Director of Legal Affairs, to

pursue another opportunity and did not

receive an exit payment.

"Rory Coveney and I agreed that it was

best that he stand down from his role as

Director of Strategy

"This enabled the beginning of the

restructuring of the leadership team and

the suppression of his role.

"Responsibility for strategy has passed

to Adrian Lynch, with no additional

compensation, in addition to his

substantive role as Director of Audience,

Channels and Marketing

"Rory's role became redundant, an exit

payment was offered by RTÉ and accepted

by Rory, and with no backfill being made

RTÉ will recoup that payment by July of

this year.

"Following independent mediation

Richard Collins, RTÉ's former Chief

Financial Officer, departed RTÉ by mutual

agreement, with a binding confidentiality

clause that was agreed to by both sides

and in the interest of fairness and respect

cannot be breached.

"As I have said before, in relation to all the

exits, I have sought an update to the legal

advice previously received."

Earlier this week, Mr Bakhurst confirmed

that Ms O'Keeffe was paid €450,000 when

she left the organisation.

Mr Bakhurst told Joint Oireachtas

Committee that he and "many people"

within the broadcaster had no knowledge

that Ms O'Keeffe had taken a voluntary

exit package "until she said it in one of the

committees".

This won't be popular but I do feel a bit for Richard Collins, I think he was treated as a patsy by O'Keefe who was leaving with her pockets stuffed with cash and by other senior execs like Forbes and conveney. I bet he got told barely a third of what was going on and I bet when this all went down it was like "Angola" as Brian Cowan said about health.

Don't get me wrong like alot of other senior execs Collins as happy to go along not asking the questions and challenging the management especially for someone in the CFO position and then nailed his coffin shut when claiming he didn't k ow what he was being paid.

Yep she seems to think that she can get others to do her bidding without her having to turn up and face the music. Have to say she seems a complete and utter cow.

I've just checked my shed - she's not hiding in there

This was raised around the time the project was announced. The musical was running in direct competion with the Gaietys own "Gaiety panto". Overlap in dates etc. Can't have two shows running at the same time in one venue. It would be the same I imagine for a lot of the other larger venues. I belive the convention centre was the only venue available.

Surely Bakhurst has a problem here. Who gave him the authority to use public money and agree to Collin's exit agreement in terms of "RTÉ by mutual agreement, with a binding confidentiality clause that was agreed to by both sides and in the interest of fairness and respect cannot be breached."

Why does he think that he can sign 'binding confidentiality clauses' for a public body? And not be answerable to say the PAC?

Isn't this why he was coy the other day, defending Cusack and refusing to give details of exit packages. He suspects that he's overstepped.

Is he for the chop?