RTÉ has admitted to overpaying its top presenter Ryan Tubridy by hundreds of thousands of euro over a several-year period.
In a statement issued on June 22nd, the board of the national broadcaster said that between 2017 and 2022, RTÉ's highest-paid presenter received a series of payments in addition to his agreed salary.
The series of payments total €345,000 above his annual published salary. Tubridy, a contractor who is paid through his company Tuttle Productions Ltd, is currently paid €440,000 per year, an 11% drop from his salary highs in 2019 when he was paid €495,000 and €466,250 in 2020.
According to the broadcaster the payments were uncovered after the company's auditors alerted the board to some of the transactions.
Details announced in the statement found that Tubridy "was guaranteed" by RTÉ an additional annual income of €75,000 "which was intended to come from a commercial partner." In 2020, this payment did not come from a commercial partner but was paid in lieu for a number of personal appearances throughout the year, according to the broadcaster.
"As part of this agreement, RTÉ in turn issued a credit note to the commercial partner thereby reducing the cost to it of its overall sponsorship arrangement with the organisation," the statement reads.
"The commercial partner did not renew this agreement for a second year, and since the agreement was guaranteed and underwritten by RTÉ, the payments were instead made directly by RTÉ to Mr Tubridy's agent (on his behalf)."
RTÉ uncovered a series of payments numbering €120,000 from the station, during the years 2017 and 2019, than had been previously publicly stated.
Tubridy has recently made headlines by stepping down from his highly coveted role as the presenter of The Late Late Show, which has since been filled by comedian Patrick Kielty.
The presenter's salary is predicted to have been cut by his move from the tv programme, but details of this reduction have as yet not been officially announced.
Header image via Getty
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