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LAST UPDATE | 25 Aug 2023
A REVIEW INTO RTÉ’s use of barter accounts has found “alarming gaps” in policies and protocols that should have been in place, according to the Minister for Media.
Mazars, a forensic accountant firm, has published an interim report on RTÉ’s use of barter accounts in the wake of the payments scandal that has rocked the broadcaster this summer.
The barter accounts came to public attention after it emerged that RTÉ had used one to pay over €150,000 to presenter Ryan Tubridy.
Then-Chief Financial Officer Richard Collins told a meeting of the Public Accounts Committee that there was only one barter account. However, RTÉ subsequently revealed in July that it had used three barter accounts to fund €1.6 million in spending on client entertainment and corporate hospitality over the past decade.
Key issues revealed in the report are the absence of properly documented policies and procedures for using the barter accounts and an apparent lack of signed contracts between RTÉ and the barter media agencies.
There was no formal list of staff that set limits on who could make purchases through the barter account and no formal list of approvers for purchases.
Mazars states in the report that “we have not seen evidence of any formal approval process, approval thresholds or approval hierarchy in place within RTÉ or specifically within the Commercial Team in respect of these purchases, although we understand that the transactions are coordinated by a member of the Commercial Team”.
RTÉ provided Mazars with a Code of Business Conduct “which contains guidelines to staff in respect of gifts and entertainment”, but the code “does not set specific thresholds or approvals required that could be applied to barter media agency related purchases”.
The report also notes that documents such as invoices, receipts and booking forms that relate to purchases through the barter accounts “are not stored by RTÉ in an easily accessible manner, and requires detailed searches of electronic mail boxes (over 1,400 emails relating to the period under review) to identify whether such evidence exists”.
“The nature of the barter arrangements meant that the type of purchasing involved as outside of RTE’s standard purchasing and procurement processes and as a result the associated internal controls and approvals processes for purchasing and procurement were not followed,” the report says.
Minister for Media Catherine Martin, who met with RTÉ Director General Kevin Bakhurst and Chair Siún Ní Raghallaigh earlier today, said that “the report from the forensic accountants again sets out alarming gaps in internal policies, procedures and controls that existed in RTÉ”.
“This lack of properly documented policy and procedures for using the account, and an apparent lack of checks and controls over who used it, is not befitting a public service organisation, and cannot be repeated,” she said.
“It is also important to say that the first steps have been made to ensure proper controls are put in place. I am re-assured from my conversation with the Chair and Director General this morning that genuine change is underway.”
Speaking to reporters at a press conference this afternoon, Martin said today’s report “raises questions as to why [the barter account] was being used in this way without the oversight”.
She highlighted that today’s report stated that there was no apparent benefit to RTÉ by using barter accounts.
The Minister said this does point to whether the use of the barter account was an avoidance by RTÉ of using the proper controls and procedures “in order to allow these purchases to happen without oversight”.
Martin also told reporters that she expects the full and final Mazars’ report to cost €300,000.
Yesterday, The Journal revealed that RTÉ spent over €100,000 on the first Grant Thornton report into the pay controversy.
The minister will be providing a copy of today’s interim report to the independent Expert Advisory Committee that is scrutinising governance and culture at RTÉ.
Ní Raghallaigh described the report as “further evidence of the deficiencies in the financial controls and procurement processes in place at RTÉ in the period under examination”.
“I have been in ongoing contact with Minister Martin and the Department since these matters emerged and in the meeting with the Minister today, I again assured her that the Board is working assiduously to ensure that all necessary steps are taken to bring the organisation in line with best practice.”
She said that “several of the issues highlighted to date have already been addressed”.
“The process of reform is well underway, and we will continue to work closely with the Director-General Kevin Bakhurst and his interim leadership team to restore public confidence in the organisation.”
In a four-page document last month that sought to explain its use of the accounts, RTÉ said “the use of barter accounts is commonplace in the advertising industry” and that they were used “solely in the context of its commercial activity of selling advertising airtime”.
“While traditional advertising campaigns are billed and paid for in full in cash, barter campaigns are billed on 50% in cash and 50% in credit, the credit being accumulated over time,” RTÉ said, enabling it to “trade its advertising space in return for goods and services produced by other companies with the media bartering company providing the marketplace for these trades, at a discounted rate”.
The three barter accounts used by RTÉ were Astus, Active, and Miroma.
Between 2012 and 2022, RTÉ said it spent an average of around €150,000 per year on client hospitality and entertainment through barter accounts, amounting to around €1.6 million over the decade.
In 2019, RTÉ spent €110,000 on client travel and accommodation to the Rugby World Cup in Japan.
Another of the expenses that was revealed through the scrutiny over the barter accounts was €5,000 on 200 pairs of flip flops for a summer party for corporate clients in 2016.
€21,000 was spent on an agency and client summer party at Teelings Distillery in Dublin.
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@Davy: kielty will want his 250,000 plus expenses either way as agreed,great value alright may aswel throw it down a shore, they were more or less anyway
RTE are the tip of the iceberg, make no mistake about that. Every state and semi-state body should be forensically audited because I guarantee you this type of thing is widespread. RTE just made the rookie mistake of getting caught.
I think we’ve learned a lot about ourselves as a nation from this shameful episode. There’s an almost contemptuous disregard for the value of taxpayers’ money on the part of the various state institutions, first and foremost.
What’s been more encouraging is the evidently growing intolerance of the kind of ruthless individualism that permeates through some sections of Irish society and seems to justify a “grab what you can” or “I’m alright Jack” kind of mentality. People are simply sick to the teeth of hearing about those who think they can cheat the rest of us out of our fair share.
Not everyone got the memo though. We had Frank Coughlan from the Indo lamenting Ryan Tubridy’s woes this week, arguing that “A chance of redemption, so central to our traditional values, was a glaring absentee. There was little appetite either for compassion or forgiveness” while managing to blame it all on the demise of the Catholic church.” Ryan got his chance at redemption, but through an absolutely stunning lack of self-awareness, humility, or grace, managed to blow it up at the last minute and snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.
@Eric: the sooner the audits you refer to are carried out the better. Their absence feeds into the kind of free for all libertarianism that seeks to remove these institutions altogether and to do away with any regulation and oversight (check your energy bills to see where this leads).
@Eric: We now live in the idolising of “the nice” coupled with pride. The two work together like toxic radiation, can’t be seen but is eventually felt.
@Eric: Excellently put. Been sayin it for years. Utter contempt for tax payers money and no restitution or recourse regarding incompetence and in some instances fraud. These minion’s believe they are not only untouchable but are entitled to abuse the system . Why we continue to put up with this is baffling. Don’t get me started on the “coalition” three card trick. FF, FG, GREENS.Another absolute con to keep any challengers out.
@Charles Mc Carthy: and you can only imagine what would happen if SF got their hands on rte. Talk about being ‘on message’. Rte is an absolutely dreadful station but personally I still believe in a state broadcaster. Just not when it looks and operates like rte. From repeats of repeats to films you wouldn’t get on the flight of your worst nightmare to ‘celebrity’reality shows to bimbo parades….and why so many f…..g chefs. jeez.
@Eric: very well said
What do you expect when you have cronyism, nepotism and a corrupt government funding them for a propaganda narrative of the un. The very definition of a clique. Cliques don’t follow laws or rules and most of the time rewrite the rules to facilitate their fraud. Shut it down and never vote for the frauds in the rail either.
@: This didn’t just pop up with wanderly wagon D “MIA” Forbes. This craic has been going on since TP was getting two of his his own fixed up using RTE as leverage.
There’s No Way Back! Time to go Subscription and get Off People’s Backs!!!
So does this mean we don’t have to pay our tv licence ?
People’s hard earned money wasted on self serving arrogant narcissists. I’m not paying the license fee anymore just to see it squandered.
@John Meade: It’s squanderd on so called TV shows as well. Very Poor value for money.
Brown envelopes would’ve filled those gaps ,, jasus have you not learnt anything from Bertie
RTE are lying when they say it was used exclusively in context of commercial activity – didn’t they use it to hide payments to Tubridy
At least 12 sanctimonious grossly overpaid ‘star’ Presenters,10 radio stations, 4 TV stations, 2 Orchestras, 2 Choirs, a String Quartet, a Publishing Company, and possibly a Partridge in a Pear tree. Before any bailout is even discussed let alone entertained, this Frankenstein menagerie must to be sorted. Enough is enough.
To be fair this is the best entertainment RTE have given the people of this country in decades. Time to close the kip!
Was there ever a more disingenuous mangled way of using a word than in the use of the word “barter” here? Purposeful sleaziness.
@Louis Jacob: Talent comes to mind
Slush funds of public money held for top brass junkets.
On the day another rise in the homeless figures were announced it just adds to ongoing incompetent running of this country. RTE still in the news..Children’s hospital fiasco again in the news..The pretend outrage by the likes of McGrath and Harris against the banks..The same banks who told them to F..k off when they met them..Over a year ago the Same politicians including Ryan smiled for a photo opp when 130 electric buses were delivered, each costing €500,000 each which are still parked up. Sweet Jesus
.
@Donal Desmond: The legend that is Eamonn Ryan.
@Jp Cleary: Next photo opp the will be there with dusters cleaning the eletric buses…Open to correction but another batch of the eletric buses arrived a few months ago. NO CHARGING POINTS IN PLACE FOR THEM … like the Children’s Hospital…Forward planning is certainly not their forte
Surprise surprise, it just gets better go RTE
“Quick quick… Everyone look over here… Homelessness an issue?!? NOT at all, but that Tubridy lad eh!” #facepalm
@Vincent Doyle: ya people come on how dare you worry about where your money is going it’s not like the government could spend it elsewhere
Anyone who pays that licence is very silly putting it mildly
Everywhere else:slush fund..Irish media:barter account..call it what it is ffs
Reduce all talent salaries to 150k gross, privatise RTE and restructure to meet 21st century technology realities and viewers/ listeners needs.
I was always told that there is no such thing as a stupid question, so here goes: why have the Executive Board of RTÉ not been fired and charged with corporate negligence? Maybe the word “corporate” is inappropriate. Criminal?
@Tony Peacock: That
is one of the better questions I have seen asked.
@Tony Peacock: I would be of the opinion that most are kept in their positions to avoid further scandals that may arise if they were held to account. Personally I think that the RT debacle is only the tip of the iceberg.
@Tony Peacock: Tony for td. Great and urgent question. Sadly, any rotten fruit will rot whats beside it and thats a perfect metaphor for the Irish political system
And we’ll be bailing them out for about 40 million soon enough
@Jp Cleary:RTE received €40 million from the government in 2019..This money was to be drawn down at €10 million a year until 2024… not a mention of this fact has emerged in recent months . The fact Dee Forbes and other directors of RTE were also Directors in GAA Go has gone off the radar.. Forbes and other directors have gone from RTE but others remain…A certain conflict of interest. When you consider they had the power to decide which games were to be shown on RTE.
@Donal Desmond: so before the end of this year it’s likely to be 80/100 million total….. but shur it’s only public money
@Jp Cleary: Yup , that about sums it up.
What were flip flops for???.
@Kathleen Bolger: The flip was for the pac. The flop was for the rest of us.
They could care one bit about the taxpayers money,they are all on the make and the’new guy’ is just as bad as any of them….close it down and get rid of it,or go pay per view before it folds because there’s not going to be enough pay per view customers to sustain it.public service tv my hat,a mouthpiece for the government since the formation of the state..the hero’s of 1916 must be turning in their graves with what’s happening to this country ….the list is endless
Over the last few day have you noticed the amount of government politicians appearing on various chat shows on RTE Radio 1,offering their opinions on matters,except their jobs,the begging bowl is up and running for sure
When is somebody going to call the Gardai? Misappropriation of funds, theft. If that was in the private sector there would be a criminal investigation underway. Why is Dee untouchable? Unbelievable country.
Why is it so hard to understand that it’s the model (ads and license fee) that’s the problem. Any organisation selling ads is going to have to do commercial things, like corporate hospitality – that’s how it works. Run it like the BBC – no ads in Ireland but make commercial cash in the rest of the world.
@Jimmy: Yes, commercialism has completely corrupted things, for example Tubridy was never going to have a guest talking earnestly about alcohol addiction and alcohol crisis in the country, when the ad breaks are full of advertisements for alcohol brands – same story with gambling addiction and gambling advertisments. Is it really public sector broadcasting to have presenters promoting butt lifts?
@Jimmy: Better to go Subscription. They can keep the poxy ad’s along with it. We All Should NOT be held to ransom to support an organisation that IS Very Poor Value for our money!!!
@Jimmy: Nobody around the world is going to buy anything from RTE or any other Irish TV station, or at the very best a very small amount. Comparing running RTE to BBC isn’t realistic, they are capable of earning monies from some of their shows as they are much superior quality.
They employ an external financial audit each year, ok… The company reports back ok… can we not claim damages off their insurance as they did not inspect the books correctly. And all you public sector works, remember a private company can not just say I am sick and not come in or say I am going to retire and receive a load of cash. Haha
@chuckles Hickey:
I think you will find that senior executives in many private sector companies do get a “load of cash” (or the equivalent) when they retire!
@Nestor: yes if it is successful. Think we are chatting about a basket case in RTE.
How does it cost €120 k to lupis ook at one person’s invoiced for 3 to 4 years, pure stupid to accept that charge.
@Lord Sea: lupis ook maybe you should LOOK Whilst typing
Still no sign of the fraud squad or revenue launching an investigation?
A completely warped organisation of pure me feiner breed
Rté licking it’s lips new funding on the way leaving no choice as to where we want or not. P P V please.
At this rate one of the consultancy houses has to sponsor the late late show!!!
Tell us something we don’t know
And ye are still not getting the RTE license money so take it out of the flip flop money ye bunch of lying flops
Illegal organisation
Just through all this confusion has Marty dropped that Renault back yet?the fuel,tax, insurance etc was probably being paid out if that aswel plus private use aswel as other vehicles and luxury’s were prob not even aware of the money wasted is huge sum to be fair
It’s worth pointing out again that a lot of this money is provided by car manufacturers, to the national broadcaster, in a country whose leadership, scientists and many civil groups have expressed grave concern about a climate crisis caused by fossil fuels and unsustainable land use
That’s fairly shtty. Still who will pay Mazar 300k?
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