RTÉ has suspended a controversial €240,000 tender process for photographers to take pictures on the set of soap Fair City.
Director general Kevin Bakhurst said the process would be paused following his decision to halt discretionary spending at the national broadcaster as it grapples with a funding crisis.
The move to advertise for photography, which would have paid a maximum of €60,000 a year over four years, prompted questions from politicians, given it was happening at the same time RTÉ was asking the Government for a multimillion-euro support package of interim funding to help it weather its current financial travails.
RTÉ’s long-running funding problems have been exacerbated in recent months by a sharp drop-off in licence fee revenue amid a negative public reaction to a summer of controversies at the broadcaster.
RTÉ had initially defended the photography tender process in the face of criticism. However, on Sunday Mr Bakhurst announced that it would now be paused.
He said RTÉ would take time to review the volume of photography required and length of contract, among other considerations, and a revised tender document will be issued once those decisions have been made.
“Given the steep fall in the licence fee and the uncertainty over interim funding, and following last week’s announcements, we have decided to halt the current tender process for Fair City photography,” he said.
“While quality professional photography is essential to enable us to promote our programmes and engage audiences, it is not possible for RTÉ to commit to a four-year contract or to this level of spend given the challenges we now face.
“So, we have decided to take time to consider the best way to balance the needs of the series with the need to reduce costs where we can. We will continue to explore how we can cut costs and maximise funding of our public services through commercial revenue, while also working hard to restore trust in RTÉ.”
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Fair City is Ireland’s most popular soap. In the first eight months of 2023, it has generated more than four million streams on the RTÉ Player – which is up 40 per cent year-on-year.
Last week, Mr Bakhurst introduced an immediate recruitment freeze and a temporary halt to discretionary spending.
Outlining other potential measures, the director general told a parliamentary committee in Dublin that there would be a move to drive down the salaries of the top-earning presenters, and he said the sale of RTÉ’s prized Montrose site in South Dublin was also under consideration.
The crisis at RTÉ erupted in June when the broadcaster revealed it had not correctly declared fees to Ryan Tubridy between 2017 and 2022.
The furore subsequently widened as a series of other financial and governance issues emerged.
Before its difficulties over the summer months, RTÉ had asked the Irish Government for €34.5 million in additional interim funding for next year.
Since then, its revenues had taken a further big hit, with the broadcaster currently projecting a loss of €21 million by year end due to a fall in TV licence payments in the wake of the controversies.
That €21 million in revenue gap was on top of a deficit of €7 million RTÉ had already budgeted for in 2023.
The Government has yet to decide how much extra funding it will release to the embattled organisation, but has made clear that any investment will have to be reciprocated with a significant programme of internal reform.
– PA
