RTÉ’S CFO COLLINS QUITS
Bakhurst warns staff of need to ‘slim down’
RTÉ boss Kevin Bakhurst told staff that the national broadcaster needs to ‘slim down’ and confirmed that the head of finance Richard Collins had resigned.
Director general Mr Bakhurst spoke to some of his 1,800 staff in a town hall meeting yesterday afternoon.
He warned that he could not guarantee that internal reviews initiated by RTÉ into the voluntary exit schemes in 2017 and 2021 and an examination of the Toy Show Musical would not uncover further revelations.
The hour and 45-minute-long staff meeting was held in one of RTÉ’s TV studios with room for 150 people seated with more people standing. It was also attended virtually by over 500 people.
Mr Bakhurst said that Mr Collins tendered his resignation as chief financial officer and will work on a handover for his replacement. Mr Collins was one of the RTÉ executives who appeared before Oireachtas committees about secret payments to Ryan Tubridy. In one appearance, Mr Collins said he was not sure what exactly he was paid, before stating that it was ‘in and around’ €200,000.
His resignation comes as the Public Accounts Committee is understood to have received a letter from Dee Forbes’s solicitor preventing her from testifying today due to health reasons. It is understood that the PAC will be seeking evidence of a doctor’s note. Mr Bakhurst and RTÉ executives are due to present before the PAC today. At the staff meeting he is understood to have expressed annoyance that reporting back to both Oireachtas committees investigating RTÉ was taking up a lot of time.
He said while some of it was part of RTÉ’s responsibility to the Oireachtas, he said other parts of it were politicians looking for ‘soundbites’. Staff who were at the meeting said that there was no detail provided on Mr Bakhurst’s ‘framework’ for strategic reform which he has said will be delivered at the end this month, but no hints were given on what divisions, programmes or jobs could be culled. One staff member told the Irish Daily Mail: ‘The big question is what is the future, and that was not answered.’
But another staff member told the Mail that it was ‘refreshing’ to hear news about RTÉ directly from management rather than in the newspapers. Staff remarked that Mr Bakhurst had ‘command of the room’ and one said it was ‘impressive’ that he presented with just a few pages of notes.
Mr Bakhurst told staff he had ‘no appetite’ for compulsory redundancies, and highlighted recent public comments from the Taoiseach who said he didn’t want to see compulsory redundancies at RTÉ. ‘The political appetite is not there,’ Mr Bakhurst is understood to have told staff.
It is understood he said that RTÉ will have to begin a voluntary redundancy package ‘at some point’ as the organisation needs to be ‘slimmed down’. He is understood to have outlined that any voluntary redundancy package will need to have political buy-in, as RTÉ needs the Government to finance it. The Irish Mail on Sunday revealed in July, that Government ministers were warning of up to 400 redundancies at the national broadcaster.
Mr Bakhurst confirmed that the fall off in TV licence revenues will leave a €21million hole in RTÉ’s finances between this year, and a further €40milion expected next
‘What is the future?’
year. He also reiterated his assertion that the RTÉ Dublin 4 campus is not worth as much as is thought, and he is awaiting a full valuation. He rejected assumptions that the Donnybrook campus could be worth over €300million. He told staff that in his personal view it is ‘unrealistic’ that RTÉ would move, but said the idea needed to be examined and there might be parts of the campus that could be sold.
He told staff that he would like to see more programmes produced from RTÉ’s regional studios, which he recently visited. After a visit to the RTÉ Cork studio Mr Bakhurst said the place was ‘dilapidated and unfit for purpose’ and said he was ‘amazed’ at what staff were producing there.
Mr Bakhurst also told staff that there is a level of trust and openness between the leadership team and board which he doesn’t think was there before.
‘Unfit for purpose’