Kielty's salary 'sets new benchmark' for presenter pay

Patrick Kielty will take over from Ryan Tubridy on The Late Late Show

Patrick Kielty's salary of €250,000 (£216,000) per series to present RTÉ's The Late Late Show "sets a new benchmark" for presenter pay.

That is according to the new RTÉ director general Kevin Bakhurst.

Mr Bakhurst also said that the broadcaster needed "to continue the downward pressure on top presenter pay".

He made the comments when questioned by reporters on his first day as director general of the Irish public service broadcaster.

RTÉ's governance and finances have been under intense scrutiny since it emerged that presenter Ryan Tubridy was paid €345,000 (£296,800) more than was declared publicly.

Mr Tubridy, who presented The Late Late Show for more than a decade, received the payments between 2017 and 2022 in addition to his published salary.

Former RTÉ director general Dee Forbes subsequently resigned over the pay deal with Mr Tubridy.

Mr Tubridy and his agent Noel Kelly are due to appear before two Oireachtas (Irish Parliament) committees on Tuesday to answer questions about the payments.

Some of the payments to Mr Tubridy were made through a "barter account" operated by the organisation.

That is a payment method in which goods or services are exchanged for other goods or services.

But some Irish TDs (MPs) have been highly critical of payments RTÉ made from the barter account - including a payment of €5,000 (£4,300) on flip-flops.

Kevin Bakhurst took over as the broadcaster's director general on Monday

Mr Kielty's €250,000 (£216,000) salary to present the Late Late Show is less than that the broadcaster has previously declared it paid to many of its top earners.

"I think we need to continue the downward pressure on top presenter pay and I did have some contact with Paddy Kielty along the way and he's behaved impeccably and I'd like to thank him for that," Mr Bakhurst said.

"And I think he's going to be a great success and look forward to working with him but it sets a new benchmark."

Mr Bakhurst also told reporters that his own salary as Director-General was €250,000 (£216,000) a year and that he gets a car allowance "of €25,000 or €26,000".

Mr Bakhurst had previously headed up news and current affairs at the broadcaster and also spent over two decades in senior positions at the BBC and Ofcom.

On Monday morning Mr Bakhurst stood down the executive board of RTÉ and appointed a temporary interim leadership team.

In an email to staff, he said "the culture in RTÉ needs change, from top to bottom".

"There can be no repeat of the siloed and at times secretive decision-making that have been at the root of the shameful events of the past weeks," he wrote.

Interviewed on RTÉ Radio 1's News at One programme Mr Bakhurst said that he had "literally no idea" why secret additional payments were made to Mr Tubridy.

"I was shocked to find out what had happened," he said.

"It has been a shameful period for the organisation.

"I do not understand some of the decision making and I do not understand some of the processes that were or were not in place.

"This will never happen again."

But speaking to reporters later outside the broadcaster's Dublin headquarters Mr Bakhurst said that there may be more revelations to come.

"I suspect there is more to come because we are trying to crawl over everything and when we discover stuff we will make it transparent," he said.

"We've got a forensic accountant coming in from the government and I suspect there may be more stuff to come out but all I can say is when it comes out we will put it out in the public domain."

Mr Bakhurst was also asked if he could stand over about the amount of money paid to top RTÉ presenters.

“I feel that this is a strong and balanced leadership team to take the organisation forward that has the right experience to continue running it, but also to bring some new thinking and some fresh blood on board," he said.

He said those who are no longer part of the board are still working for the organisation, and announcements for each individual would be made shortly.

He added that no substantial staff payoffs would be approved by him.

In an all-staff email sent earlier on Monday, Mr Bakhurst said under his leadership the broadcaster and its leadership team would be "dedicated to working closely with staff".

Mr Bakhurst said he was committed delivering a public service to be proud of.

He added salaries of the broadcaster's executive and interim leadership team will be published alongside the earnings of RTÉ's 10 highest paid presenters beginning with the annual report 2023.

Staff 'angry and embarrassed'

A new register of interests will also be created for staff and contractors as part of a bid to increase "openness and transparency".

Tánaiste (Irish deputy prime minister) Micheál Martin described the actions as "first steps towards helping restore public confidence in RTÉ".

"As the national broadcaster, which rightly challenges other institutions, RTÉ must be leading out in terms of equality and inclusion," he said.

Mr Bakhurst also recognised the effect the controversy has had on staff at the organisation after meeting them earlier on Monday.

"[Staff are] angry, embarrassed and rightly appalled by some of this behaviour and I share all those sentiments," he told the News at One programme.

"My role now is to rebuild confidence and trust, and make this a much better place for people to work, a much fairer place for people to work."

The shake up comes after Taoiseach (Irish prime minister) Leo Varadkar said trust in the broadcaster cannot be restored without change.

On Saturday, Mr Varadkar said he was aware changes to organisation were coming once Mr Bakhurst took up post.

He also stated reform of the TV licence was "long overdue", and wanted it to happen during the current government term.

On Sunday, RTÉ's director of strategy, Rory Coveney, resigned from his role with immediate effect.

Who is Kevin Bakhurst?

Mr Bakhurst was announced as RTÉ's new director general in April.

He was appointed managing director of the broadcaster's news and current affairs team in 2012.

He later became deputy director general for six months before leaving in 2016.

Prior to that, he was a senior BBC News executive where he had been controller of the BBC News Channel.

He was also deputy head of the BBC newsroom between 2010 and 2012.

Since then, he has worked at the UK communications regulator Ofcom where he was appointed group director of broadcasting and online content.