Today\u2019s revelation of an IT overspend of \u20ac900,000 by RT\u00c9 shows that lack of transparency and mismanagement continue to plague the national broadcaster, according to Social Democrats TD Sin\u00e9ad Gibney.<\/p>\n
Deputy Gibney, who is the party\u2019s spokesperson on arts and the media, said:<\/p>\n
\u201cJust weeks after it emerged RT\u00c9 had to write-down \u20ac3.6 million due to a partly failed IT project, we learn today of another waste of money at the station in recent years.<\/p>\n
\u201cResponding to a question I asked at today\u2019s Arts, Media, Communications, Culture and Sport Committee, a further \u20ac900,000 overspend on a Channel Management System was confirmed by a senior figure at the station. This resulted in an impairment of \u20ac390,000 being taken on the system for 2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is particularly shocking this matter has only come to light now given management\u2019s pledge to oversee a new culture of transparency and accountability at RT\u00c9 following a litany of controversies, which have undermined public confidence in the broadcaster.<\/p>\n
\u201cDespite receiving a bailout of \u20ac725 million from the taxpayer, this latest spending scandal again highlights the legacy of insufficient financial controls and poor governance at RT\u00c9.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen public money is involved, it is vital there is honesty and transparency at all times. Yet the culture at RT\u00c9 still seems shrouded in mystery.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt must now be asked: did RT\u00c9 plan to voluntarily disclose this particular overspend to the committee or has the matter only come into the public domain because I asked the right question?<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is simply not good enough for these financial matters to be merely noted in RT\u00c9\u2019s accounts \u2013 if the public interest is to be served, they need to be highlighted with the government as soon as they happen.\u201d<\/p>\n
May 28, 2025<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Today\u2019s revelation of an IT overspend of \u20ac900,000 by RT\u00c9 shows that lack of transparency and mismanagement continue to plague the national broadcaster, according to Social Democrats TD Sin\u00e9ad Gibney. Deputy Gibney, who is the party\u2019s spokesperson on arts and the media, said: \u201cJust weeks after it emerged RT\u00c9 had to write-down \u20ac3.6 million due […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":12547,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[675,7,685,497],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12576","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arts","category-press-release","category-rte","category-sinead-gibney"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n