More Than €1 Million Went Through RTÉ's "Slush Fund" Barter Accounts

The Public Accounts Committee discovered that €1.25 Million went through the controversial RTÉ "slush fund" barter account over the last 10 years.

This revelation over this spending which reportedly included spending €275,000 for tickets and travel for clients to Champions League and Rugby World Cup matches, was confirmed by chief financial officer Richard Collins.

Such payements which went through this barter account include €26,000 on a trip to the 2019 Champions League in Madrid between Liverpool and Tottenham Hot Spur, €111,000 on trips to Rugby World Cup from the same year, and €138,000 spent on 10 year IRFU season tickets. 

It was also described as "outrageous" by its own chairperspon Siún Ní Raghallaigh, with former chairperson Moya Doherty branding it a "slush fund".

“I’m not here to justify the barter account", Collins stated at the hearing. “I wasn’t happy with it when I first saw it. I can’t speculate on what it was used for". 

The PAC also heard about €340,000, which were made to former Late Late Show host Ryan Tubridy, which were also called an "act to decieve" by the Chairperson.

The PAC also heard about the arrangement made between RTÉ and Renault, underwritten by the broadcaster to pay Ryan Tubridy €75,000 from 2020.

This marked another harrowing day for RTÉ, who have come under major scrutiny over their alleged lack of oversight, over previously undeclared payements to Mr Tubridy, after under reporting the presenter's salary by €345,000 between 2017 and 2022.

Elsewhere, interm deputy general for the broadcaster Adrian Lynch has said that the new director general Kevin Bakhurst will work towards a “reconstitution of the executive board” of RTÉ.

Ryan Tubridy and his agent Noel Kelly are to be called to the next Oireachtas media committee meeting, which takes place next Wednesday, as this saga continues.