Director General Kevin Buckhurst has told the Dáil Public Accounts Committee that RTÉ will be insolvent by early spring unless it secures additional government funding, reports RTE.
The committee heard that RTÉ will make losses of €10-12 million this year.
Members were informed that it has cash reserves of around €68 million and has borrowed €65 million from a credit limit of €100 million.
However, with a TV license revenue shortfall forecast at €61m this year and next, Bakhurst warned the agency would be short of cash unless more funding was made available.
“If we didn’t get this cash, we would run out of cash, that’s for sure,” he said. “It is worrying,” reports RTE.
The committee heard that RTÉ has sufficient cash reserves until next spring.
However, Buckhurst and the broadcaster’s financial controller Mike Fives told the PAC that long-term reform of the funding system was urgently needed.
The DG also said that the license fee trend has decreased by 30%.
But he said payments were down 39% last week.
Mr Bakhurst also told the committee that due to legal constraints, he was unable to provide a note at the May 2020 meeting.
RTÉ has previously said it could not provide the committee with a written note prepared during a meeting between former Director General Dee Forbes and Ryan Tubridy’s agent Noel Kelly due to legal confidentiality.
Labor TD Alan Kelly said the committee would force RTÉ to provide a document relating to the May 2020 meeting, adding that Mr Buckhurst’s position would be untenable if the matter went to court.
PAC chairman Brian Stanley said RTÉ had been able to provide members with this information, adding that the PAC had also received legal advice on the matter, reports RTE.
Alan Dillon TD also told Mr Bakhurst that the document would be mandatory and said RTÉ’s “reputation of RTÉ is on the ground” so it should be provided voluntarily.
Separately, Mr Buckhurst told Independent TD Verona Murphy that RTÉ had no legal basis to recover €150,000 paid to former Late Show presenter Ryan Tubridy as part of the tripartite settlement.
“But I have said publicly that I think there is a moral imperative rather than a legal one on that”, Mr Bakhurst added, reports RTE.
The PAC requested details of RTÉ’s 100 highest-paid employees, Ms Forbes’ contract and information on any payments to executives who have left the company, but in a letter to the committee, law firm Arthur Cox told RTÉ that such disclosure would be “lack a clear lawful basis”, reports RTE.
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