RTE licences plummeting in €1.6m loss
RTE is facing a massive licence fee switch-off, with losses more than tripling in the space of a month as public confidence in the broadcaster continues to slide.
In February, losses of €1.6million were recorded coinciding with revelations about huge pay-offs to executives including the €450,000 redundancy payment to former chief financial officer Breda O’keeffe.
The public also learned of exit deals for former top executives Rory Coveney and Richard Collins, as well as the controversial resignation of board chair Siun Ni Raghallaigh.
The drop-off in licence fees is a clear sign that public sentiment towards RTE and their reaction to the controversies last June is continuing.
The most up-todate monthly figures for TV licences from An Post show 75,183 licences were purchased in January, and 61,601 were purchased in February.
Total TV licence sales recorded by An Post in 2023 were 824,278 compared with 947,924 in 2022, a reduction of 13% or a decline in revenue of more than €19m.
There was also public disquiet surrounding the failure of former director general Dee Forbes to answer questions about the scandals which emerged at Oireachtas committees last summer. The former RTE director general’s solicitors informed the Oireachtas Media Committee she is “unfit to be involved in any process” and remains “under active medical care”. In recent days, there was more controversy when a solicitor for Ms Forbes said that she is not “fit or able” to engage with the Oireachtas Committee on Media. In a letter to the committee, her solicitor said that Ms Forbes is under “active medical care” and that “further medical information” to confirm that she is “unfit to participate in any processes at this time can be provided with the requirement that it is kept confidential”. Committee chair Niamh Smyth said she was disappointed that Ms Forbes will not be able to engage with members. She added that it meant that there would be “unfinished business”, but added that the committee will proceed with completing its report. This week, the station’s new Director General Kevin Bakhurst told staff the national broadcaster would look at phasing out car allowances and agreed that they were superfluous. There was shock last year when RTE revealed that senior members of staff did not need a driving licence to receive a car allowance and the 61 people were in receipt of it at a cost of €657,000 in 2022.