Time for RTÉ to come clean on pay deal – Cannon

RTÉ’s top brass who hid the pay of their top star need to come clean, a Fine Gael TD has said.

Deputy Ciarán Cannon said the actions of those involved in hiding the true pay of Ryan Tubridy since 2017 have shattered irrevocably the trust that Irish people placed in the broadcaster.

“It is astonishing. How could they let this go on for so long? Why would they,” Deputy Cannon said.

“If this serious breach of oversight had been uncovered in Government and it was established that the taxpayer had been deliberately misled for six years, we would have had a resignation by now with further repercussions to follow,” Deputy Cannon said.

The Galway East TD serves on the Oireachtas media committee.

“RTÉ must come clean immediately. The Director General Dee Forbes needs to come forward and explain what she knows. The future integrity of the national broadcaster is at stake here,” he said.

“The fallout is serious for all involved, primarily for those who knew about these extra payments and actioned the secret pay deal to Ryan Tubridy. Further answers are needed from all involved.

“Only when we fully know what happened here can it be decided what should happen next.

“Let us all consider what is clear now.

“RTÉ, whether by intent or design, have misled the Irish public and Oireachtas for several years regarding their finances and pay deals.

“The forum or hearings that deal with this in the future must be able to shine an intensely bright floodlight under the hood of RTE’s internal finances.

“What other secret deals exist? What else are the taxpayer unaware of? Hiding behind confidential deals and market sensitive information is no longer acceptable, it never was.

“Only one outcome matters here to the taxpayer and all those hard working employees of RTÉ who knew nothing of this and have been repeatedly asked to incur pay cuts over the last decade – the truth,” Deputy Cannon said.