Results 1,701-1,720 of 5,601 for speaker:Paul McAuliffe

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): RTÉ (13 Jul 2023)

Paul McAuliffe: At that meeting the verbal agreement was given to underwrite the agreement.

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): RTÉ (13 Jul 2023)

Paul McAuliffe: Okay. Therefore an RTÉ solicitor was present on 7 May 2020 when the decision to underwrite was given.

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): RTÉ (13 Jul 2023)

Paul McAuliffe: So the RTÉ legal department knew from as early as 2020 that RTÉ had agreed to underwrite the agreement.

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): RTÉ (13 Jul 2023)

Paul McAuliffe: So it is not fair to say the issue of underwriting was contested consistently throughout because it had been agreed in the meeting, witnessed by RTÉ legal.

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): RTÉ (13 Jul 2023)

Paul McAuliffe: I will allow my other colleagues to follow up on that point. On the underwriting, Mr. Lynch said it was not a final negotiation. Would he accept that while it was not a final negotiation, that as early as Ms O'Keeffe's first email, the point was conceded by RTÉ in the negotiations?

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): RTÉ (13 Jul 2023)

Paul McAuliffe: But her written evidence is.

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): RTÉ (13 Jul 2023)

Paul McAuliffe: To be fair to Mr. Lynch, Ms O'Keeffe has decided not to be here today.

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): RTÉ (13 Jul 2023)

Paul McAuliffe: The only written evidence is her own words that say "we can provide you with a side letter to underwrite this fee for the duration of the contract". That is the only evidence the committee has before it. That would appear to be contradictory to what Mr. Lynch is saying. It would appear to be for the entire duration and it would appear that Ms O'Keeffe conceded that point on behalf of...

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): RTÉ (13 Jul 2023)

Paul McAuliffe: That is contrary to the email with the words of Ms O'Keeffe in red - we cannot contest them here because she is not here - where she says RTÉ will underwrite the agreement.

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): RTÉ (13 Jul 2023)

Paul McAuliffe: That is not my question. My question was whether Ms Mullooly agrees that it was conceded on behalf of RTÉ by Ms O'Keeffe.

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): RTÉ (13 Jul 2023)

Paul McAuliffe: She said she conceded in negotiations. It was not a final legal position but it was conceded.

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): RTÉ (13 Jul 2023)

Paul McAuliffe: But we concede points lots of times during a negotiation.

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): RTÉ (13 Jul 2023)

Paul McAuliffe: With respect, I do not think the committee has made a decision on any issue because we should not do that. I think we should be careful-----

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): RTÉ (13 Jul 2023)

Paul McAuliffe: If I can make one point, Mr. Lynch said of this email that it was evidence that they met alone. He supplied additional information about who was at a Teams meeting.

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): RTÉ (13 Jul 2023)

Paul McAuliffe: No, but he supplied additional information on who was at a Teams meeting.

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): RTÉ (13 Jul 2023)

Paul McAuliffe: I will just go back to the tripartite agreement. When did RTÉ become aware that the tripartite agreement from Mr. Kelly existed in its written format? What is the earliest date for knowledge of that agreement?

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): RTÉ (13 Jul 2023)

Paul McAuliffe: The invoice to Renault was issued in 2020, and the contract was signed by Renault in 2021.

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): RTÉ (13 Jul 2023)

Paul McAuliffe: It seems unbelievable to me that Renault would pay an invoice a year before it would sign a contract. I think Mr. Lynch has indicated.

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): RTÉ (13 Jul 2023)

Paul McAuliffe: So it was not paid until 2021, despite the invoice being raised in 2020.

Public Accounts Committee: Appropriation and Expenditure of Public Moneys by RTÉ (Resumed): RTÉ (13 Jul 2023)

Paul McAuliffe: Despite all the other parts of the five-year agreement being signed, sealed and finalised, the tripartite agreement was not actually in written format until 2021 for anybody involved in it.