RTE to be funded by TV licence fee and 'multi-annual' State payment

The plans which will be brought to Cabinet next week were hatched by officials in the Department of Finance, Public Expenditure and Communications.

By: irishmirror.ie

Jul 18 2024
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RTE to be funded by TV licence

RTE is set to be funded by both the existing TV licence fee along with a new “multi-annual” State payment, it’s emerged.

The plans which will be brought to Cabinet next week were hatched by officials in the Department of Finance, Public Expenditure and Communications.

Members of the public will still be required to pay the €160 annual fee - but it remains unclear if it will be paid in the same way. It’s understood that the new “multi-annual” funding stream will come directly from the exchequer.

The amount of money and how long it will go on for remain unclear.

Media Minister Catherine Martin is understood to have pushed for exchequer funding to be “multi-annual” to ensure the broadcaster remains financially secure into the future.

Government ministers have been at loggerheads over the last couple of months about how RTE should be funding - with Deputy Martin initially pushing for complete exchequer funding.

Taoiseach Simon Harris, who is at the European Political Community summit in Oxfordshire, hinted RTE would be funded under the mixed model.

He said: "I've said there's two ways of funding public service broadcasting in my view, there's that you go with some form of reformed licence fee model, or you go with direct exchequer fee funding.

"But that's kind of a straw man way of looking at it. Perhaps there's a way in the middle.

"I've lain down some principles that are very important to me, I don't want to see any taxpayer having to pay more in terms of a licence fee that they are today, I want to have an understanding as to what we're funding in terms of public service broadcasting

"I want to see how the excellent public service broadcasting done by RTÉ can be supported but also a recognition that public service broadcasting also happens by other outlets, be they independent television outlets, be they local radio or local media, they're some of the key things."

He added: "And then the fourth and it's really important to me this one, I want to see the model being sustainable, I don't want to see a Government do something that just kind of looks like grand we've sorted public service broadcasting for a few months.

"I want to know that whatever funding model is in place is durable and can be long-lasting and I think all of those principles can be met.”

The Taoiseach also declared he wants to bring "a finality" to the issue next week" and bring the plan to the Cabinet before the Dail summer recess.

He said: "I hope we can bring a finality to this next week, I'd like to see that happen, it's been this saga has gone on for far too long."

Earlier this month, we revealed RTE has lost nearly €30 million in TV licence fee revenue in the 12 months since the financial scandal rocked the broadcaster. The number of people paying the €160 TV licence fee charge decreased dramatically in the wake of the financial scandal that engulfed RTÉ last summer.

This controversy started with news that the national broadcaster had under declared Ryan Tubridy’s salary by €345,000 over five years and had underwritten a commercial “side deal” that would result in RTÉ paying Mr Tubridy €150,000 over two years.

This led to a larger scandal that saw exuberant spending by senior executives and the use of a “barter account” exposed.

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