RTÉ’s interim deputy director general Adrian Lynch told the Public Accounts Committee yesterday that he was aware of the issues raised after the audit, before announcing its “possible” Ryan Tubridy would leave the Late Late Show.
On March 3, Tubridy told this newspaper that he had no intention of leaving.
He said: “I don’t know where this is coming from, the story comes up every year or two. I am here talking to you today with a view to go straight back into the job I love. The bookies will ask what colour jumper I am going to wear and put the odds on that. It is not that weird, it has happened a load of times. Every now and again they get restless,” reports The Mirror.
On March 7, Deloitte auditors first alerted RTE to potential problems with Barter account payments.
On March 16, Tubridy announced he would be stepping down at the end of this season’s late-late run, reports The Mirror.
Last Friday, he issued a statement denying that the controversy played any role in his decision.
Yesterday, Sinn Féin TD John Brady Lynch asked if Tubridy could have been informed that the issue had been raised and that it could have “influenced” the timing of his departure.
Mr Lynch answered: “Based on the information from yesterday, it’s possible,” reports The Mirror.
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