Thread by @SarahAMcInerney

Combing through RTE statement for #rtept tonight. Some new info:
"RTÉ paid, via the UK Barter account, for the costs of hosting the commercial sponsor events in 2022. The actual cost of the events was €30,586 [and] were recorded in the barter account at a value of €47,477."

It also says: "No member of the RTÉ Executive Board, other than the Director General, had all the necessary information in order to understand that the publicly declared figures for Ryan Tubridy could have been wrong."

It says: The contractual arrangements (2020-2025) with Ryan Tubridy were negotiated by the Director General and the then Chief Financial Officer supported by the RTÉ solicitor and approved by the Director General.

"The DG verbally agreed...to underwrite the terms of the commercial arrangement. Present...was the Director General, two representatives of the Agent and the RTÉ solicitor. This final aspect had been sought by the Agent...and there had been significant push back by RTÉ."

"Other than the DG and the Commercial Director no member of the Executive Board had knowledge of the two invoices (9th May 2022 and 6th July 2022 ), the payment of those invoices through the barter account, or any of the circumstances surrounding those invoices."

The Commercial Director has stated that: Her knowledge of those matters was limited to the instructions received by her from the DG in connection with the payments in question.

Commerical Director says: Those instructions were received at a point in time when the arrangements on foot of which the 9th May 2022 and 6th July 2022 invoices ultimately came to be raised had already been negotiated and agreed and to which the Commercial Director was not party