Mary Lou McDonald: RTE scandal exposes culture of privilege

Added: 2026-05-20

[00:00:00]So, for Charleston, uh Deputy Carthy, he's shouting me that he's a Monahan man. You missed the most important uh element of the story. So, go go for it, uh go for Um Teeshik, just 3 years on from the financial scandals that rocked RT, the state broadcaster, is once again embroiled in controversy.

[00:00:22]The latest day battle centers on RT revising the list of its top 10 highest earning presenters to include Mr. Derek Mooney. It transpires that Mr. Mooney should have been on the list for the last 5 years, but his salary of almost 200,000 euros was kept a secret by the top brass at RT. Strangely, in 2020, Mr. Mooney's role was reclassified as a producer rather than a presenter, although the dogs in the street know that Derek Mooney is a presenter.

[00:00:56]RT's top earners list was incorrect 8 years in a row. Transparency out the window again.

[00:01:04]People will remember the secret payments and the slush fund controversies, scandals which revealed a shocking absence of oversight and governance, exposing a culture of arrogance and entitlement. RT top brass flahoolic with the use of public money.

[00:01:22]And despite a massive bailout and big promises from government and from RT, what really has changed? Once again, the minister in charge of all of this, Minister O'Donovan, knows nothing. All of this latest debacle is news to him.

[00:01:41]This morning, he brought legislation to cabinet to put the broadcaster under the remit of the Comptroller and Auditor General, but this is years after the Public Accounts Committee said that this should happen. Government in slow motion. The Irish public bailed out RTÉ to the tune of 725 million euros. That's almost 3/4 of a billion euro. That's a lot of taxpayers money, but there's little evidence of the change that people expected. Top management still play fast and loose, not reporting accurately the big salaries of the high flyers. And why is this? Well, because you have failed to take on the prevailing culture of arrogance and privilege. The privilege is gifted by government to RTÉ stand in stark contrast to how you treat working people and families. A budget of 9.4 billion euro last October that left working people worse off, forced to watch every euro that they spend, backs to the wall trying to keep up with rising prices, doing all of the right things, and yet still struggling to just get by. There's no bailout for them, no help from government, but RTÉ top management is handed 3/4 of a billion in public money and continues to take the taxpayers for fools. We have here a tale of two Irelands. Working people playing by the rules, abandoned by government and told to tighten their belts, and top brass executives at RTÉ who believe the rules don't apply to them, who believe they can do what they want without consequence. This needs to be nipped in the bud. Your government needs to sort this out, Taoiseach, and fast. Rina mhuintir na hÉireann RTÉ a hard hold.

[00:03:36]The shock came thick and quick, a million. Masla, macasamhail, sean-chonsamhail de staidéar ní féidir a dhéanamh ar thost stráiceáilte. It is a core of gach éileamh ingne. So, Taoiseach, bringing RTÉ under the remits of the C&AG is long overdue, but it cannot stop there. People want accountability and consequences. Do you accept he should that your failure to act decisively has allowed this bad behavior as RTE, this culture of entitlement to continue?

[00:04:07]>> First of all, I do not agree with your assertions once again because no matter what any state agency does or anybody does anything now out there, you're going to blame the government. That's your standard practice. The government you're going to blame the government.

[00:04:19]The government is at fault at everything.

[00:04:21]So, the government must now run RTE apparently is your latest assertion.

[00:04:25]Just think about that and reflect on that. Is that what you are actually saying that politicians should actually go in there and run the national public service broadcaster?

[00:04:34]That's what you're saying. Like I know you have to do this for electoral reasons in politics and play the game, but there's a serious undercurrent here and coming from the Sinn Fein party, that creates its own challenges in good time as well. Just put that on the record. And I would say it is unacceptable in terms of what has happened. And the minister has out of meeting or has met with the director general today is today that he's meeting with them. You made a comment in terms of the legislation. The minister brought that before cabinet today and you again implied that he was at fault for the delay in terms of bringing that legislation. Not true.

[00:05:07]Not true because I think the Iraq decision pre-legislation took considerable length of time and you were involved in pre-legis When I say you, your party, wasn't your members were. Legitimately.

[00:05:17]But please don't come in here you having taken your time at pre-ledge and then say the ministers is is is is is is acting in slow motion. That's the kind of dishonesty that is characterizing every one of your presentations here in recent times at leaders' questions. You don't really care about the truth anymore. It's just whenever something breaks out, let's have a go at the government, let's blame the government, and that's it. Simple formula and that's what you are about.

[00:05:40]No, I accept and I by the way, I don't believe the current management is laissez-faire. I do think they want to get to grips with this. That's my assessment. I think the board does as well. And yes, everybody knew um that Derek Mooney was was a presenter not a producer. When you said the dogs in the street, I'd say the dogs in the wild knew it um in terms of of of of of of these Please. Please. But also there are others maybe. And what it speaks to in my view is a lack of structure in terms of how people are recruited, how people are uh designated, how people are treated from a human resource point of view within RT. Uh and there that's the wider issue that needs to be the bonnet needs to be lifted up uh on.

[00:06:20]That's is there consistency across the organization in respect of the treatment of people uh and the treat treatment of employees of the company. And and there is a real disparity in terms of how some are treated compared to how others um have been treated. And that's a problem um for RT that needs to be sorted out.

[00:06:40]And there needs to be far more transparency than we've experienced in recent years in terms of that issue. Uh in terms of the funding issue, we either collectively as an electorate make up our mind do we want public service broadcasting? Do we want the national broadcaster or not?

[00:06:55]These are options that politics can take. We could decide to abandon public service broadcasting altogether and just let it free for all. I don't agree with that, but I'm just saying when you kind of have a go at the 700 million and all that, there were choices facing government.

[00:07:08]You either cut it down, undermine it, let it go to waste, or let it go private. What are you What are you saying?

[00:07:16]Are you saying the 700 million shouldn't have gone?

[00:07:19]Red Tory water >> fully fully agree with that. And that's what the minister is doing. It's going in before public accounts, C&AG. And it'll be before the public accounts now.

[00:07:27]And it took some time to get through the house.

[00:07:29]But the minister is doing that. It took some time because you guys, rightly, I don't I've no issue with the privilege.

[00:07:35]But you can't come out and blame the minister for delays of privilege. You just can't do that. Now, you don't can't to away with that kind of stuff. And I'm not going to let you get away with that kind of stuff. I'm not going to talk to you now. Go make silly rule on model RT.

[00:07:48]Uh Corsi Paul Uh Corsi Pastiorth Kaidine Cornelia of winning English August will call for a whole again. A toy go over last dig Uh in in in RT.

[00:08:02]from winner Go go RT.

[00:08:06]We want to be in a house and out. Uh go with session.

[00:08:09]>> Thank you, Tish. Uh >> Corsi Tish will light up the forum chair. Time is up, Tish. Deputy McDonald So, unfortunately, the Tish is very touchy about the idea that you might be expected to do your job and to do it competent competently.

[00:08:27]And a key function of your government is to ensure that state agencies, including RT, are accountable. That an agency such as RT that has been bailed out to the tune of almost three quarters of a billion euro that that agency behaves in a manner that is transparent and appropriate.

[00:08:49]That we do not see again a rerun of the scandals that rocked RT only a very short time ago. All of us were led to believe that the bargain with RT was as follows. That they would be bailed out.

[00:09:03]That they would be funded. That public broadcasting would be absolutely supported. And that by way of return there would be a change in behavior and culture. There would be appropriate standards, accurate and transparent reporting. And we now know that that is not the case. And that Time is up, Deputy.

[00:09:23]Tish will respond.

[00:09:25]Deputy, your time is up. Tish will respond.

[00:09:29]Deputy McDonald, your time is up. The Tish will respond.

[00:09:35]Tish, please.

[00:09:37]Well, first of all, the minister um has brought through the legislation which will bring RT under the remit of the controller and auditor general, which is a stronger regime of of public accountability for RT than hitherto had been the case.

[00:09:53]And there's always been sensitivity in terms of the relationship between the political system and RT.

[00:09:59]And in the midst of all the the turmoil and the noise, just need to keep an eye on that, too.

[00:10:05]But they will go before public accounts.

[00:10:06]I know you can laugh away at Deputy Carthy because it would be of no concern to you. If you could run RT, you'd run it in the interest of your party. That's the way you guys operate.

[00:10:13]Uh and would operate. But the point I'm trying to make is this, that Deputy O'Donovan Minister O'Donovan is also meeting with the Director General today and with the chairman of RT. I do believe they're making a sincere effort to try and get this reorganized and there has been some progress made, but this is unacceptable what has happened. I think what's more important is that there is consistency across the board within RT in terms of how people are treated from a human resource point of view and in terms of the rights and conditions that they apply to everybody in RT. Time is up. Thank you. Now, before that