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Minister Catherine Martin

RTÉ chair indicated ahead of Prime Time interview that she might resign, Media Committee told

Here’s a roundup of what you should know from tonight’s media committee hearing.

AFTER THREE HOURS of grilling from Oireachtas members, Minister Catherine Martin will be hoping to have closed the book on the events leading up to Siún Ní Raghallaigh’s resignation. 

“It has been a rollercoaster but I hope we’re on the right road now,” Martin said as the meeting wrapped up. 

The Minister again thanked the former chair for her work and said she is determined to move forward with RTÉ director general Kevin Bakhurst and the RTÉ board. 

Much of tonight’s committee focused on building the timeline up to the Minister’s appearance on Prime Time last Thursday night when she failed to express confidence in Ní Raghallaigh – who subsequently resigned from her position as a result. 

Key questions were also asked about the intentions behind the Minister’s actions. 

The stand out revelation from tonight was that Ní Raghallaigh had already threatened to resign ahead of the Minister appearing on Prime Time.

We also learned that the Minister did not plan to ask Ní Raghallaigh to resign in the Friday morning meeting that never happened.

And on the issue of whether Martin went on Prime Time with the intention of forcing Ní Raghallaigh’s resignation, the Minister denied this entirely. 

Martin repeated multiple times throughout the three hours that she simply wanted to be honest and transparent during the Prime Time interview and that she “tried in every possible way” to avoid saying that she did not have confidence in Ní Raghallaigh.

Right at the very end when things seemed to be wrapping up, chair of the media committee Fianna Fáil TD Niamh Smyth threw another small grenade into the mix with fresh questions about an exit package paid to former RTÉ executive, David Nally.

In response, Martin said that would be a matter for former Director General Dee Forbes and that it was another reason for Forbes to come before the Oireachtas Committee.

Other important information that we learned tonight: 

  • The Minister said she will not have the two outstanding RTÉ reports until April and that a decision on the future funding model for RTÉ will not be made until these are received by Government. She hopes to bring a paper to Cabinet on a new funding model for RTÉ before the summer.
  • Martin hopes to appoint a full-time chairperson to the RTÉ board within a week. 
  • The Minister said she continues to have trust in RTÉ director general Kevin Bakhurst. 
  • When asked if she had a personal issue with the chair, Martin replied “absolutely not”.  She said she has not spoken to Ní Raghallaigh since Wednesday last week and does not expect to speak to her again. 
  • The Minister said she has been told by Bakhurst that Dee Forbes did not receive an exit package.
  • When asked if there are any other outstanding issues of concern with RTÉ the Minister said no, not currently.
  • The committee agreed to invite Ní Raghallaigh and former Secretary General of the Department of Media, Katherine Licken, to appear before it.

The letter and the resignation

In the most shocking revelation from tonight’s committee hearing, Martin told TDs and Senators that the former chair of the RTÉ board had indicated that she would resign last week ahead of the Prime Time interview if she received a letter from the Minister.

Martin told the committee that her confidence was further rocked last week when she was told by her officials that Ní Raghallaigh, had indicated she would not accept a letter from the Minister outlining her grievances, never mind a meeting request. 

Martin said “when you reach the point where someone doesn’t even want to receive a letter from the Minister, that’s problematic”. 

The Minister had relayed through her officials that she intended to write a letter to Ní Raghallaigh outlining her disappointment at being misinformed by her in relation to the RTÉ board’s involvement in exit packages at the broadcaster. 

mining-industry-in-ireland Former chair Siún Ní Raghallaigh Norma Burke Norma Burke

Responding to questioning from Fianna Fáil TD Christopher O’Sullivan, Martin said Ní Raghallaigh indicated that she would resign if such a letter was sent.

“Later on as phone calls progressed in the day I had it indicated to her that not only would I write a letter but I wanted to meet.

“She indicated she felt she would not come to a meeting,” Martin told the committee.

The Minister said the comment was “so astounding” and she was hoping the former chair would agree to meet her.

“I couldn’t understand how someone would try and tell the Minister how to manage their work,” Martin said, adding that she hoped it was merely a “rash comment” from the chair.

Martin said she subsequently sent the letter, which she said did not call for Ní Raghallaigh’s resignation.

Looking ahead, it sadly does not seem as though tonight’s meeting has drawn the latest RTÉ controversy to a close. 

With the committee agreeing to invite both Ní Raghallaigh and Licken to appear before it, there may be further grilling yet to come.

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    Mute Rebecca De Stanleigh
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    Dec 3rd 2019, 1:01 PM

    I don’t understand how anyone can listen to Sheeran.

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    Mute alan
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    Dec 3rd 2019, 2:36 PM

    @Rebecca De Stanleigh: but you would get quite far down the road if you could. His music is symptomatic of the times. It may be unimaginative, bland but this is what it is meant to. How did we get to this stage? How were people’s expectations about songs and music in general so successfully lowered? And why?

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    Mute Ananya Sharma
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    Dec 3rd 2019, 3:42 PM

    @Rebecca De Stanleigh: And you listen to?

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    Mute Alan Johnson
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    Dec 4th 2019, 6:09 AM

    @Rebecca De Stanleigh: with their ears I would imagine kid

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    Mute Cocker
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    Dec 4th 2019, 8:44 AM

    @Ananya Sharma: just because lots of people like something, doesn’t mean it’s good. Nazis were popular in Germany at one point

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    Mute sb
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    Dec 3rd 2019, 12:26 PM

    ‘Four of the five were male’. Hmm I wonder what that statement aims to achieve

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    Mute Manbackonboard
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    Dec 3rd 2019, 12:31 PM

    @sb: That you should listen to music based on the gender of the artist rather than your own personal taste.

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    Dec 3rd 2019, 12:48 PM

    @Manbackonboard: ‘women need equal rights in the music industry’!!!!!

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    Mute John Lally
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    Dec 3rd 2019, 12:26 PM

    It’s fairly mad to think that in another decade very few of these artists will be known at all. I doubt very much that many people will be listening to Billie Eilish or Post Malone in ten years time. There’ll be someone new

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    Mute Alan Johnson
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    Dec 4th 2019, 6:10 AM

    @John Lally: People still listen to Chris Brown and Macklemore. There thirst for dogshite music is relentless

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    Mute Verandah
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    Dec 3rd 2019, 1:13 PM

    Wherever about the rest, Ariana Grande and Billie Eilish’s must have some machine behind them, because their music is appalling.

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    Mute Peter Cavey
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    Dec 3rd 2019, 12:28 PM

    If you are interested in the popularity of all music artists over the course of the past 50 years, watch this. It’s mesmerizing. There are also a few artists that will surprise you.
    https://youtu.be/a3w8I8boc_I

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    Mute Thomas Meaney
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    Dec 3rd 2019, 2:45 PM

    @Peter Cavey: very interesting. I enjoyed that. For me that video shows 2000 – 2001 was where music fell off the cliff and lost all credibility when the likes of lilwayne, jayz and effin Britney spears joined “the hall of fame” Previous to that it was all the greats swapping in and out over 2 or 3 decades. After 2000 it became has beens. “Musicians” who came burned our ears and have ultimately and thankfully disappeared.

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    Mute Fr. Fintan Stack
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    Dec 3rd 2019, 6:37 PM

    @Peter Cavey: Yeah interesting that. Hard to believe U2 barely got a look in, just near the bottom 1988/89

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    Mute Snotser Galligan
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    Dec 3rd 2019, 1:31 PM

    Surely Declan Nerney must have been neat the top?

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    Mute Hugo McCann
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    Dec 3rd 2019, 2:35 PM

    Just goes to show…….You can’t trust ‘People’

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    Mute Whatever
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    Dec 3rd 2019, 3:17 PM

    Awful lot of music taste shaming going on in here by a bunch of auld lads who still think Status Quo should be number 1. Personally I feel Bohemian Rhapsody is the greatest song of all time though so…

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    Mute lambda sensor
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    Dec 3rd 2019, 3:42 PM

    @Whatever: regarding Bohemian Rhapsody: this video is absolutely brilliant. A chap listening for the first time. His reactions are just incredible.
    https://youtu.be/npn027raQBo

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