Data access requests from broadcaster Ryan Tubridy and his agent, Noel Kelly, about the payments controversy that led to the departure of Tubridy from the station in 2023 have cost RTÉ more than €100,000 so far.
The requests, made under data-protection law that entitles people to see what personal information a body holds about them, were made about a year and a half ago but have not yet been finalised. It is understood there is a dispute about the level of disclosure received to date.
The two men are seeking internal communications relevant to the 2023 crisis over Tubridy’s remuneration.
The development, which has not been reported before, has the potential to reignite the 2023 controversy over Tubridy and his remuneration, which saw Tubridy’s relationship with RTÉ come to an end and upheaval at boardroom level in the national broadcaster.
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Both sides are using law firms, with RTÉ using Arthur Cox, and Tubridy and Kelly using Hayes solicitors. The legal costs for RTÉ to date have already exceeded €100,000, The Irish Times understands.
Under data regulation law, people have the legal right to access information held by organisations about them, with the right of access having only limited exceptions.
Where there is a dispute over the level of disclosure made, the matter is reviewed by the Data Protection Commissioner, who deals with the data controller (RTÉ in this case).
It is understood the Tubridy and Kelly requests have led to this appeal process being engaged.
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The data requests from the two men are circumscribed by time and other limitations and are focused on retrieving information relevant to the 2023 controversy but nevertheless have the potential to result in a huge amount of material being disclosed.
Tubridy worked for both RTÉ radio and The Late Late Show on TV, while Kelly acted as agent for not just Tubridy but also many other high-profile presenters at the station.
The potential for the data access requests to raise legal issues, or cause embarrassment to senior figures at the station, are among the concerns the requests will have raised within RTÉ.
“RTÉ has received data access requests from both parties,” a spokeswoman for the station said, referring to Tubridy and Kelly. “These require a significant amount of work that we are currently processing.”
The spokeswoman confirmed that neither Tubridy nor Kelly has initiated legal proceedings, though some figures at the station fear the data requests could be a prelude to legal action.
A spokesman for Tubridy and Kelly said they had no comment.
The potential resurgence of the Tubridy payments controversy comes as the broadcaster prepares to open its voluntary exit programme, designed to address in part the ongoing funding crisis at RTÉ.
The Tubridy crisis erupted in June 2023 when the RTÉ board issued a statement saying Tubridy, its highest-paid presenter, had been receiving higher remuneration than had been disclosed as part of the State-owned organisation’s policy of revealing how much it was paying its top-earning presenters.
The statement sparked a crisis at the station, including multiple changes at board level, appearances before Oireachtas committee hearings, a media controversy and protests by RTÉ staff.
Kelly, who negotiated Tubridy’s contract with RTÉ and appeared with him before two Oireachtas committees during the 2023 crisis, still acts for Tubridy.
Tubridy now presents his own show on Virgin Radio UK in London, and has a podcast, The Bookshelf, produced by Kelly’s NK productions. Taoiseach Micheál Martin is the guest on the podcast episode due to become available this Tuesday.
There has been a sharp rise in the use of data access requests in litigation proceedings and employment disputes in recent years. Such requests could produce material for use in legal proceedings, or for use in public relations activity.
