Sir, – A whopping €725 million is now planned to be given to RTÉ in a bailout package, while serious questions still remain unanswered about the media organisation’s financial accountability (“RTÉ to receive €725m in public funding over next three years”, News, July 23rd). To be giving an organisation such sums of taxpayers’ money when the Oireachtas Public Accounts Committee has been blocked and frustrated in its efforts to get to the truth is reckless and irresponsible. No one media organisation should be given such sums which will almost guarantee its monopoly position and empower the organisation to be even more unaccountable. The licence fee is also staying, despite Minister for Media Catherine Martin indicating that the model of paying for it through the general scheme of taxation had public support.
The old guard and special interests have won out again. Much of the money doled out to RTÉ will, you can be sure, be used to pay for huge exit packages.
The broadcaster has acknowledged it published inaccurate accounting and that controls were overridden. Key players in the scandal did not even bother to appear at the Public Accounts Committee hearings where most of the answers would be found. Our politicians are capitulating to RTÉ's begging bowl because RTÉ gives them a soft platform.
Nothing will change, despite the scandals. – Yours, etc,
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MAURICE FITZGERALD,
Shanbally,
Co Cork.
Sir, – After months of Oireachtas committee hearings, internal and external reports, we end up paying the same licence fee, with a tax top-up of hundreds of millions of euro, for an organisation that in the private sector would have been declared bankrupt years ago. – Yours, etc,
VERNON RUSHE,
Rathgar,
Dublin 6.
Sir, – The Government, after many months, has announced its decision on how to fund RTÉ. As I understand it, it looks like I will continue to pay for my TV licence; and I will pay again, through my taxes, for an additional annual “top-up” for the next three years. In short, this decision is akin to RTÉ's programming schedules – another repeat. – Yours, etc,
CLARE BALFE,
Dublin 7.
Sir, – RTÉ is a public service broadcaster,and should be publicly funded to the hilt, but it should be stripped of its ability to generate income from carrying ads on any of its platforms.
This form of revenue gathering should be the sole preserve of the independent production sector, which should not be in receipt of a scintilla of funding from the public purse. Such an arrangement would be bound to engender a healthy degree of competition, which in turn would allow a more vibrant and creative broadcasting industry to flourish and thrive. – Yours, etc,
PAUL DELANEY,
Dalkey,
Co Dublin.
Sir, – I congratulate RTÉ for pulling off one of the biggest squeezes on the public purse since the banking crisis.
It has managed to get the Government to bail it out with taxpayers’ money, while still enjoying the benefit of the licence fee and TV advertisement revenue.
Three sources of income.
That worked out well for RTÉ. But, as always in these situations, not for us. – Yours, etc,
DES CAREY,
Hartstown,
Dublin 15.