Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees
Thursday, 13 July 2023
Public Accounts Committee
Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): RTÉ
9:30 am
Mr. Adrian Lynch:
Just to clarify, when I was here last week I never said that the DG was the only person who knew about the tripartite agreement. It is obvious from Grant Thornton that the DG said she had no hand, act or part in the implementation of that. My main point, which was issued on 27 June, and which I still stand behind, is that the DG was the one member of the executive board who gave the verbal undertaking to underwrite the agreement. It was a commercial decision that came with risks, and I do not think it was done with malintent. As to what then happened, it has to be remembered also that this was given in the context of a country locked down in a pandemic, which was a unique set of circumstances. When, as Ms O'Leary has said, Renault was not going to renew for years 2 and 3 and Mr. Kelly came looking for payment, it is at that point there were the exchanges which I outlined today in terms of these two invoices which were then-----