John Brady (Wicklow, Sinn Fein)
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216. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht his plans to bring RTÉ under the remit of the Comptroller and Auditor General; the timeline for this; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22102/25]

Aidan Farrelly (Kildare North, Social Democrats)
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231. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if he will provide an update on the progress made in respect of the completion of an amended broadcasting Bill that will provide for the Comptroller and Auditor General to fully audit RTÉ and the date on which it will be introduced. [22745/25]

Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick County, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 216 and 231 together.

On 7 May 2024, the Government accepted in principle the 116 recommendations of the Expert Advisory Committees appointed to carry out reviews of RTÉ in relation to Governance and Culture and Contractor Fees, HR and Other Matters. The re-assignment of the Comptroller and Auditor General as auditor of RTÉ was a key recommendation of the Expert Advisory Committee on Governance and Culture. On 8 October 2024 the General Scheme of the Broadcasting (Amendment) Bill was published which provided that the Comptroller and Auditor General will undertake the following activities in relation to RTÉ:

• carry out an audit of the RTÉ's annual accounts under section 5 of the Comptroller and Auditor General (Amendment) Act 1993;
• carry out, where the Comptroller and Auditor General considers it appropriate, a value-for-money examination under section 9 of the Comptroller and Auditor General (Amendment) Act 1993;
• submit, under section 11 of the Comptroller and Auditor General (Amendment) Act 1993;
  • on foot of its annual audit, an audit report; and,
  • on foot of an annual audit or any value-for-money examination, a special report.