Ryan Tubridy and Noel Kelly to "set the record straight" over RTÉ payments

Broadcaster Ryan Tubridy and agent Noel Kelly will sit before two Oireachtas committees today for questioning over €345,000 worth of hidden payments which Tubridy received from RTÉ.

Tubridy said in a statement this morning that: "We will be presenting key documents and new information to the two committees which we believe will bring maximum transparency to the situation”.

The former host of The Late Late Show added that his opening statement will "set the record straight and call out some untruths". He described the scandal as his “darkest hour both professionally and personally".

In his own opening statement, Mr Kelly will profess that his client “has been made the poster boy for this scandal.”

Breaking - in his opening statement, Ryan Tubridy says:
I am here to do one thing and one thing only: to set the record straight and to call out some untruths. There are 7 material untruths which I would like to address. @rtenews

— Paul Cunningham (@RTENewsPaulC) July 11, 2023

The Public Accounts Committee said there are seven areas which it wanted to inspect.

These include payments made in 2017, a deal with car manufacturer Renault, the raising of associated invoices, any advice and instructions given to Noel Kelly by Tubridy, and a video call between ex-director general Dee Forbes and Noel Kelly when the public broadcaster underwrote the Renault deal.

Earlier today, a senior PAC member voiced their disapproval of being made to wait for documentation from Tubridy and Kelly.

Minister Catherine Martin told RTÉ News it’s "regrettable" the PAC has been made to wait until today to be sent important documents, adding that “time is of the essence.”

Martin added that "the drip feeding and lack of information has been highly problematic" and "in order to move forward" it must end.

An accountant to examine RTÉ's barter accounts is expected to be announced by the Government later today.