Presenters’ pay and licence fee drop outlined in RTÉ’s annual report
By Bairbre Holmes, PA
RTÉ stars were paid up to €351,000 last year, according to the broadcaster’s annual report.
Joe Duffy, who retired from RTÉ in June, received €351,000 in 2024 through a company listed as Claddaghgreen Ltd, Claire Byrne earned €280,000 via Derrough Media Ltd and Pamanco Ireland Ltd was paid €257,657 for the services of Patrick Kielty.
Other names in the top 10 highest paid presenters include Miriam O’Callaghan, Brendan O’Connor and Ray D’Arcy, who left RTÉ earlier this month.
The salaries of the organisation’s top executives were also published in the report, with director general Kevin Bakhurst listed as receiving €250,000.
The report was published on Wednesday after it was presented to cabinet that morning.
It also detailed how a severance payment with a total cost of €475,000, including a contribution to legal fees, was agreed with a former member of the executive board.
Speaking on Radio One’s News at One programme the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport Patrick O’Donovan said he would be raising the issue of that payment with RTÉ’s chairperson on November 6th.
He added he would have preferred to meet the chairperson before the report was published, but media speculation over recent days meant he wanted to bring it before the Oireachtas “as soon as possible”.
The report also showed how RTÉ’s income from the licence fees dropped by €4 million in 2024 compared to the previous year.
Mr O’Donovan said it was “too early to say” if there has been any recovery in licence fee payments in 2025.
He called on listeners to pay their licence fee, saying the importance of public sector broadcasting can be seen in programmes like The Traitors and RTÉ’s coverage of the Olympics and Euro 2024.
He added: “This is a public service that needs to be funded.
“And people who own a television need to put their hand in their pocket and pay for the television licence.”
RTÉ has been hit by a number of financial scandals since 2023 which has resulted in the resignation of former director general, Dee Forbes, and the departure from the station of presenter Ryan Tubridy.
The 2024 report shows the organisation returned to profitability last year, reporting a before-tax surplus of €5.3 million, compared to a deficit of €10.3 million in 2023.
However, the organisation did receive additional public funding of €48 million.
Mr O’Donovan also said there are a number of “legacy issues” that “need to be aired” including a number of pension payments, an acre of land on the Montrose campus and the ownership of an artwork he said was worth “in the region of €100,000”.
