Brian Stanley (Laois-Offaly, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

-----and we can ask it what steps are being taken to address this. Is that agreed?Agreed.

Can we agree to note the listing of accounts and financial statements? Agreed. As usual, the listing of accounts and financial statements will be published as part of our minutes.

There are a couple of items of correspondence. As previously agreed, items that were not flagged for discussion for this meeting will continue to be dealt with in accordance with the proposed actions that we have circulated, and decisions taken by the committee with regard to correspondence are recorded in the minutes of the committee’s meetings and published on the webpage.

The first category of correspondence under which members have flagged items for discussion is B - correspondence from Accounting Officers or Ministers or both. No. 2162C is from the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, Deputy Catherine Martin, dated 3 October, providing an update with regard to the terms of reference for the Mazars report. I propose that we note and publish this item. It was something on which we were very much in agreement with her. She stated in her letter of 3 October that:

The [RTÉ] Expert Advisory Committee that I appointed to undertake a Review of Governance ... have requested the following expansion ... of [the terms of] reference of the Mazars examination to assist them in their ... work:

- to review whether appropriate processes and procedures were followed in relation to the approval and operation of the barter account ... established in 2012;

- to review the role of the 'Executive Board' and Board of RTÉ as regards the governance of the barter account in the period 2017 - 2022; and,

- to review whether, and if not why not, the internal audit function in RTÉ, the Audit and Risk Committee of the Board of RTÉ, and RTÉ’s external auditor examined or queried the barter account in the period 2017 - 2022.

She went on to state that:

Mazars have informed my Department that this expansion to the terms of reference will not impact on the timelines for the delivery of Mazars 2 in November 2023. A further report (‘Mazars 3’) encompassing the matters set out in the expanded terms of reference is also ... [being] completed ...

That is so members are aware of that response from the Minister. If it is agreed, we will note and publish the item of correspondence. I think members will be happy enough with it. Does Deputy Colm Burke wish to comment on it?