The UK government received a setback in its attempt to control the RTÉ turmoil when the ex-chair Siún Ní Raghallaigh alleged that she was forcefully removed in a strategic action by the Ministry of Media, Catherine Martin, to tarnish her character. This claim was made public mere hours before the coalition leaders convened on Monday evening to select her replacement. In her statement, she dismissed Martin’s justification of the live RTÉ Prime Time interview, which had instigated her hasty exit almost two weeks earlier.
She indicted the Minister of deliberate passivity towards the broadcasting network and seemed to dispute some of Martin’s outward statements about how often they connected. Later, the party heads approved Martin’s recommendation of appointing Terence O’Rourke, a former KPMG management partner, as RTÉ’s new board chairman, which is yet to be sanctioned by Cabinet on Tuesday.
The RTÉ crisis grew as newly-appointed board members were accused of misrepresenting earnings by PAC. Ní Raghallaigh’s comments made immediate demands on the Minister, challenging some assertions about the acrimonious dispute over RTÉ’s pay-off package for ex-chief financial officer, Richard Collins, last autumn.
The crux of the problem was Ní Raghallaigh’s unintentional lapse during two meetings with the Minister, where she failed to remember that Collins’s deal was approved by the RTÉ board remuneration committee. This led to the deterioration of her rapport with Martin, confirmed when the previous chair admitted board involvement last Thursday, resulting in the TV interview during which the Minister refrained from showing faith in her.
Ní Raghallaigh expressed her bewilderment at the fact that the minister had revisited the exit packages issue from the previous October. She stated, “The fact that this was brought up again after five months is and remains confusing to me.” She acknowledged that if the Minister wanted another chair, it was her right. However, she couldn’t keep quiet about the way her dismissal took place, claiming it was a deliberate attempt to smear her name. She added that Martin had not been helpful in halting the downward trend in licence fee payments and had declined to guide licence payers.
The account given by Ms Ni Raghallaigh immediately sparked a reaction from a number of Fianna Fáil politicians, including Senators Malcolm Byrne and Timmy Dooley, who expressed their unease. This came at the same time as Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, Tánaiste Micheál Martin, and Green Party leader Eamon Ryan were in serious conversations, following ten tumultuous months of turmoil within the national broadcaster.
They have consented to the nomination of two additional board members to RTÉ, which will be unveiled today, as well as Mr O’Rourke’s nomination as the new chair, pending Cabinet authorization. Mr O’Rourke was chosen over previous Health Service Executive CEO Paul Reid, after being approached by the government last week. He also currently serves as chair of the ESB and has past experience on the board of The Irish Times.
A forthcoming report on significant governance failures at RTÉ from Prof Niamh Brennan of UCD is expected within weeks. The government is optimistic that the induction of a new chair and board members will aid in regaining traction in the efforts to revamp the national broadcaster.
Nevertheless, Ms Ní Raghallaigh’s extensive statement cited considerable shortcomings on part of the Minister and her department’s officials. She effectively stated that there was no justification for Ms Martin’s ignorance of the RTÉ board’s involvement in the Collins deal before she publicly criticised her on live television.
Ms Martin acknowledged Ms Ní Raghallaigh’s statement, and reconfirmed her belief that “any Minister has to take depend on acquiring clear, timely and precise information from the head of a State body.”
On a separate note, the Public Accounts Committee is set to release its report into RTÉ on Tuesday, which will provide over 20 recommendations.
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