Ms Dee Forbes:

As the Chairman knows, RTÉ has a public service remit. It also has a commercial remit to commercialise the output we create and put to air. The role of our presenters is multifaceted. They present several shows depending on the individual. They are very important to RTÉ and are very important to the messages they have to deliver on a regular basis. I understand why this is a topic of conversation among the public. The role of presenting a show and being a broadcaster can be difficult. It is not something that everybody can do despite what the public might think. We highly value the contributions these people make to RTÉ and beyond. In the context of our current situation, we are addressing that with the presenters concerned. They will be subject to ongoing discussion for the future.

There is a market for presenters. On the basis of information we have received in recent months, five of the ten top-paid presenters are outside RTÉ. There is a bit of a myth that there is not a market. There is a market for presenters, which is quite competitive at the moment, both here and in the UK. Having said that, we recognise that given our financial situation, we need to address the matter. We are doing that by asking our key presenters to take a 15% cut, which is on top of the cut of in excess of 30% that they have taken in recent years.