Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
REDUNDANCY PACKAGES OFFERED by RTÉ as it seeks to reduce its headcount by 400 need to be consistent with pay-offs made elsewhere in the public service, the Minister for Public Expenditure has said.
Paschal Donohoe said while it was a matter for RTÉ how it managed its voluntary redundancies plans, he made clear the national broadcaster needed to work within certain parameters.
Donohoe was commenting after being asked if he would be prepared to veto the plans if RTÉ devised a scheme that he considered too generous.
A key element of RTÉ’s strategic reform plan is a voluntary redundancy scheme, estimated to cost €40 million, that would reduce headcount by 400 – 20% of the current staffing level – by 2028.
The Government has agreed to provide €56 million in additional funding to RTÉ to help it absorb a sharp fall in collection of TV licence revenue.
RTÉ was plunged into crisis in June when the broadcaster revealed it had not correctly declared fees to its then-highest-paid earner, Ryan Tubridy.
The scandal widened as a series of other financial and governance issues emerged.
“We haven’t got to the point where the detail of redundancy packages has been brought to Government,” Donohoe told reporters in Dublin today.
“What RTÉ has said is that they want to get to a reduction in the size of RTÉ of one-fifth over the next number of years. And they want to do that in a voluntary way.
“How they will do that is mostly a matter for them because I have to recognise the right of public service employers to decide how they want to manage industrial relations matters themselves.
“But, of course, I’ll have to have a look at what would be the packages they will be proposing and make sure they’re consistent with how similar issues have been handled elsewhere in the public service.
“But those packages have not been brought to me. I don’t think we’re at that point yet, there’s a few months of engagement to go.
“And I, understandably, would want to make sure that what is on offer in one part of our public service is consistent with what has been offered elsewhere.”
Asked if he would veto an over-generous scheme, Donohoe added: “I think what I am saying is that there are certain ways in which these issues are handled across the public service. And, across our different state and semi state bodies, they have to be inside those parameters.
“Given the level of change that’s under way in RTÉ, given the fact that I made clear last week that the funding next year is going to be conditional on changes to be made, I’d rather look forward to seeing those changes being made, than have to talk about vetoing things if they don’t happen.”
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
From a man with several spare homes!
The usual waffle
Mickey lives in a large Inn, I’m sure there are unused rooms/space up the Áras…why not lead by example…Christmas spirit & all that..
@Robin Basstard: I’d say his ego will fill up the space
Just from reading the headline I was hoping he meant the 10k plus homeless that we currently have in our country.
No room at our Inn? Mr Higgins Ireland at the moment is less of an Inn and more of a derelict cowshed when it comes to people needing room. If we had it we’d gladly give it unfortunately when we had little to no room our overlords in the EU thought it would be a great idea to shoehorn people into places that simply had absolutely no room for them and they continue to do so to this day. Despite it’s best efforts Ireland isn’t a parable of the loaves and fishes, there will be no miracle just more heartache so please stop with the over simplification of a complex problem and maybe just maybe take a small bit of initiative and lead by example, open up one of your many residences this Christmas and there’ll be that bit of extra room you so passionately speak of.
@Rachel O’ Meara: Ireland has plenty of room, we also have plenty of houses but we have people that want to live in different locations to those house.
So houses exist in the rest of the country but many instead want to be in Dublin with no home.
@Barry Somers: Very little social housing exists, rents are soaring and mortgages are hard to get for anyone outside of the banks cookie cutter criteria. Dublin is a disaster when it comes to housing but the rest of the country isn’t far behind. Plenty of space doesn’t equate to plenty of houses especially when you add in the green part of the presidents speech, no one wants to live on a concrete island.
@Barry Somers: want to be in Dublin? Instead of out the county where there is so much more abundant jobs and opportunities? Get real, plenty population in Dublin that would love the opportunity to live elsewhere but for many its Dublin to advance or else emigrate. This is our government’s fault that our housing problem exists not the working tax payer.
@Barry Somers: Yea, there’s a massive amount of work in rural Ireland.
In case you haven’t noticed, rural Ireland has been in decline since the famine.
@Barry Somers: yeah right. Where are all these mythical jobs outside Dublin? Why do you think people commute for hours every day in and out of Dublin from Louth, Kildare, Wicklow, Wexford and further. For the fun of it?
@Teresa Ryan: Considering most homeless have no interest in working sure they don’t need to worry about getting a job down the country. Free gaff in Leitrim….is that not better than being “homeless” in Dublin?
Evidently there is no room at the Inn for the masses of Irish homeless and thats perfectly okay for Michael D. As far as I can see there is rampant racism in Ireland but against our people. If there where 10,000 asylum seekers on the streets you can bet your bottom dollar that the establishment and their cronies would be up and arms and would ensure it wasnt happening, but nah, its only a few Paddys let them sleep on the streets.
@Seamus Hanratty: Merry Christmas Seamus!
@BillyCroft: Merry Christmas to you too, I’m sure you’ll have a bountiful and prosperous Christmas all paid for by taxpayers money that is lavished at the NGO Trough.
@Seamus Hanratty: Well said.
@Seamus Hanratty: does someone need a dictionary to look up racism for Christmas?
Echoes of Swedish prime minister Reinfeldt’s 2015 “open your hearts speech”…….
@Raymond Power: a personal favourite of mine, up there with Pohambas 2011 Christmas message in Namibia
The champagne socialist and his spin.
Legend in his own mind
Talking to some people in their twenties in Dublin other day. Thought they were heading for a nice new cuddly progressive future what with recent referendums and awareness of climate change etc. Instead they now realise they will be living with their parents in perpetuity due to the housing disaster which is due in no small measure in Western economies because of the influx of cheap labour that is being imported. No future here now for these young Irish people thanks to the globalism espoused by Varadkar and Michael D, the man who absolutely assured us he would be a one term President…
@Valthebear: if you knew anything about politics you would know that the slide towards global corporate feudalism with a wealthy elite and the rest struggling to get by is the very thing Michael D has opposed all his life. The rest of our political system has assisted it.
@Squiddley Diddley: ha ha ha ha ha! Dimmest common of the day… ‘opposed all his life’… He has done nothing to improve the lot of Irish working people, only spout craftily worded platitudes to delude the likes of yourself. Meanwhile he, and his daughter in the useless Seanad live the life on the taxpayer.
Anytime I forget why I feel so alienated from the mainstream of Irish society, I only need to look at our president to remind myself why.
This hypocritical, moral-posturing windbag was voted in by you.
@Fire Digital Marketing: Not by me. Saw through him 8 years ago. The man speaks in a liberal language when he should be speaking of realities of the here and now.
@Fire Digital Marketing: Anytime I get depressed by comments on the Journal I look around at all the decent fair-minded open-hearted people around me who are the mainstream of Irish society.
Our dipstick politicians, dragging up how we and other people from other countrys immigrated Again and again. Same rhetoric to try be popular with the young voters.
@garry murphy: but is it not true? We did go around the world in millions. And the same way you talk is how Americans spoke about the Irish arriving in New York.
Funny how history repeats itself.. shame we don’t remember our own past.
@Aaron Tynan: if we did we got nothing for free. We worked hard for anything we got and had to endure all kinds of racist abuse too
Oh feck off Mr. President, you live in a bloody mansion and also have several homes. Set an example and open up the Aras for Xmas day and feed the homeless. Or is your message meant only for others.
Why do I suspect the latter applies.
As for immigration/emmigration, note what your predecessor said, “we must acknowledge our history but we must not be bound by it”.
Muppet
Will that man ever stop patronising the nation?
hows the private jet Mickey ? do as I say not as I do
Five pensions D Mickey. Eviction notice for tenants at his third Galway property which was extended to end of this month as 2 of his six tenants are students from abroad with no place to go.This was speculative for no capital games tax. Family home still in Galway plus apartment central Dublin.
Said 2 years ago agreed with Fr Peter Mc Verry that evictions should be banned.
Exponential HYPOCRITE.
@David Glynn: Mr. President is evicting his tenants, “say it aint so”
How much do we pay this man again?
@Teresa Ryan: Well he gets 250 k. Robinson and McAleese are on pensions of circa 125 k annually.
Point is he does not have to sell house except the cg tax expires for his property investment. To be fair he hasn’t made a huge profit. But he is bailing out.
The Journal comments section is nothing if not predictable
@jamesdecay: True, I am a bit shocked no one mentioned trips on the government jet so far vis-a-vis climate change, the parrots are let their standards slip! Great to see a few unrelated mentions of homelessness though, always a firm favourite go-to of the orginally-challenged.
@jamesdecay: same crap every day.so comments will be too..
@jamesdecay: God bless us all that we have wise sages like you to lead us from darkness and be a beacon of hope to the masses
@Nowa Huta: don’t mention it.
You people voted this man in for a second term.. Only have yourselves to blame for putting him there.
@Tim McCormack29: Most of us are happy with him. It’s not his his type who fecked things up.
@Tim McCormack29: we all didn’t vote for the little p***k
@Squiddley Diddley: Well he’s trying his best to do so niw
No room at the Aras!
This man would make you vomit
What’s the rent on your rental property
If being racist is bad..then what the hell is a government and president who live off there own peoples money and leave them with no home no hospital no nursing homes and freeze to death in winter..half of old people sick is not the flu.its having 20 € a week to buy oil and coal..mr president.you have room to house the woman and children and all men sent back to defend there country..
Never watch him. Never watch RTE and its continued state propaganda. RTE should be closed down.
Much like al gore, talks about how you should do your bit on climate change . And then uses a private jet and or a convoy of cars , every time he moves from a to b
Higgins was always a fraud,a favorite of the political and media elites who never scrutinize him, given a free run for a second term as President symbolizes everything that is corrupt about this country, time for him to shut his hypocritical ranting and discredited marxist waffle, and get off the stage with his 5 pensions.
I’ve no interest in what the self serving useless hobbit has to say
Just celebrate Christmas as the arrival of Christ not any of this nonsense. Worst president since Robinson
@Joey Byrne: Worst ever.
@David Glynn: And still the best of the bunch we had to pick from…
@Joey Byrne: He speaks of Mary and Joseph and no room at the inn and Mr President, by his own admission, is an avowed atheist.
I wonder how he fits that square peg into his round hole.
@Squiddley Diddley: No. There were others better.
Such an appaling lack of understanding an explanation of the Christmas story in the name of political expediency. Why disd i expect more?
As usual an t-Uachtarán has a true view of our situation. We should seek justice for generations to come by setting the foundation of giving justice to the present generation
Do we dismiss them……. those waiting on hospital trollies and a place to call home? Apparently this and previous governments continually carry this out as the norm! Hypocrisy at its highest!
Horrible to the core
What about the homless irish? Are they too close to home to have pity on?
Some neck.
Nollaig Shona agus Athbhliain Síochánta dibh go léir.
Great positive message, when the Irish needed to emigrate they found refuge around the world. It’s great that as a community we now have the ability to help people who are now in the same situation.
@Eoin Sheridan: They found work, not free accommodation, food phones, medical care and transport and they didn’t get to demand privileges most of the local population didn’t have.
@Eoin Sheridan: no one stopping you from helping them
@Marg FitzGerald: Nor are immigrants to Ireland though.
That’s a good one alright from a man with several Homes
The repetition within our political discourse is symptomatic of how clueless we all are. Needles to say these are all very complicated questions that as a society we have yet to grasp. We live within a crystal Palace.
Some Neck… evicts people from
His rented homes, n his hypocrisy rant…. like rest of the them
should be shown or experience what it’s like to lie on a hospital trolley or sleep in a sleeping bag at sub zero temperatures…. Shove it Higgins No one wants to know
Higgins is a complete hypocrite
@Ivan Assache: tell them to sell their own houses before they go moving about, maybe they could buy one here with the money.
have your say