A new RTÉ report has revealed Ryan Tubridy and his agent Noel Kelly had no involvement in the public understatement of the presenter’s salary between the years 2017 and 2019.
The broadcaster was plunged into chaos earlier this summer when it was revealed that Ryan’s earnings were publicly understated by €345,000 over the last six years.
The issue was identified during a routine audit of RTÉ’s 2022 accounts, prompting an independent review of the matter by auditing organisation Grant Thornton.
The RTÉ Board issued an apology over the error, and later Ryan also apologised for not questioning RTÉ over his published earnings.
The scandal resulted in the resignation of a number of RTÉ’s key staff members – including former Director General Dee Forbes and former Director of Strategy Rory Coveney.
RTÉ’s former Commercial Director Geraldine O’Leary later announced her early retirement.
On Wednesday, August 16, the RTÉ Board published the phase two of a second report by Grant Thornton, commissioned by the Audit and Risk Committee to examine issues surrounding the public disclosure of earnings by Ryan Tubridy.
The report confirms that Ryan’s earnings figures between 2017 and 2019 were publicly understated due to adjustments made by RTÉ’s financial department.
Phase two of Grant Thornton’s second report also makes clear that neither Ryan nor talent agency NK Management had any involvement in the adjustments for the examined period.
Part 15 of the report’s executive summary reads: “From a review of the documentation available to me, and from meetings held with individuals, Mr. Tubridy was not personally involved in the negotiations with RTÉ regarding his contract.”
“In performing my review of emails and documents in relation to the negotiation of Mr. Tubridy’s 2020 Agreement, I confirm that Mr. Tubridy was not identified as a sender or recipient in any of the emails I reviewed, nor was he identified as an attendee at any of the meetings between RTÉ and NK Management (being Mr. Tubridy’s Agent).
“In short, Mr. Tubridy had no involvement in the adjustments made by RTÉ in 2020 to published earnings totalling €120,000 for 2017 to 2019.
