RTÉ has finally submitted a revised business plan for its controversial redundancy scheme to the Government – five months after it was asked to do so, the Mail has learned.
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Mail → submit → Government
The stalled Voluntary Exit Programme (VEP) is now expected to reopen ‘imminently’, a senior station source said this week.
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source → stall → ?
They added the ‘narrow parameters’ of the first-round scheme – under which the roles of anyone who was accepted under the voluntary scheme must be 100 per cent ‘suppressed’, meaning the roles are no longer needed – are also expected to widen.
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roles → add → scheme
The news was greeted with relief by some staff members this week.
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news → greet → members
One RTÉ employee told the Mail: ‘It looked for a while like management were hoping that people would get so fed up with waiting for the redundancy scheme, that they would just leave and that did happen.’
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that → tell → scheme
Last week, Media Minister Patrick O’Donovan publicly said the slow pace of reform at RTÉ was the reason he was withholding €20million of a promised €240million in funding next year.
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he → say → funding
Mr O’Donovan was understood to be referring in particular to the VEP, which was announced with great fanfare in March last year.
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which → understand → March
It promised to deliver 400 exits from the heavily staffed broadcaster by 2029.
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It → promise → 2029
But 20 months in, the scheme has only managed to deliver 68 departures under the programme.
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scheme → manage → programme
The Mail has previously reported how RTÉ management had urged the Government to relax stipulation that VEP applicants’ roles be fully suppressed in order to meet the voluntary redundancy targets.
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roles → report → targets
Up until this week, RTÉ management had failed to provide all the information Minister O’Donovan had sought about the proposed second round of the scheme.
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O’Donovan → fail → scheme
However, the Department of Culture, Communications and Sport – which has responsibility for RTÉ – this weekend confirmed the broadcaster had finally submitted its business case.
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broadcaster → have → case
A Department spokesperson told the Mail: ‘The Department received an initial business case for a 2026/2027 Voluntary Exit Programme (VEP) from RTÉ on 17 June 2026.
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Department → tell → June
‘This was reviewed by the Department and NewERA, and observations were provided to RTÉ requesting submission of an updated and more comprehensive business case, which was received from RTÉ this week.
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which → review → RTÉ
‘The business case will now be considered by the Minister, prior to seeking the consent of the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation.’
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case → consider → Expenditure
RTÉ also confirmed: ‘All information has been provided.’
The Mail understands the parameters of the redundancy scheme will now widen and RTÉ will no longer have to demonstrate that it can make a 100 per cent saving with each exit achieved.
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exit → confirm → saving
A senior management source said the need to fully suppress a job, which was a stipulation of the first round, will be removed.
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which → say → round
‘We’re going to see a much less strict scheme which will get people shifted out and that’s going to happen imminently,’ they said.
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they → go → scheme
More than 300 staff members expressed an interest in leaving under the VEP when it was launched last year.
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it → express → VEP
Appearing before the Oireachtas Media Committee last December, director-general Kevin Bakhurst said RTÉ could have achieved 30 to 40 more departures than the 68 who have signed up to the redundancy scheme if there was ‘slightly more flexibility’.
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who → appear → scheme
Sources said ‘overly stringent’ oversight from the Department hindered the scheme and the Government’s stated aim of achieving a more streamlined and cost- effective national broadcaster.
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oversight → say → broadcaster
This has resulted in frustration within the organisation on the part of dozens of people who had unsuccessfully applied for the redundancy scheme.
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who → result → scheme
One source told the Mail earlier this year: ‘It was overly stringent; the Department seemed to be blocking everything.
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Department → tell → everything
‘RTÉ had to show there would be a 100 per cent saving before an employee could avail of the scheme.
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employee → have → scheme
That’s very difficult to do.
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That → ’ → ?
So if junior roles were to be suppressed to allow one senior person to leave and RTÉ were making a 95 per cent saving, the Department would say “no, that person can’t go”.
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person → suppress → saving
You can see why it was so slow.’
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it → see → ?
Another RTÉ source told the Mail: ‘The Department was demanding more and more information on each application is what I understand.
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I → tell → what
There was back and forth and back and forth and then the Department would eventually say, “No, there isn’t enough of a saving, that person isn’t getting it.”’
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person → be → it
Welcoming the news that RTÉ will finally present its business case this week, an RTÉ staff member told the MoS.
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member → welcome → MoS.
‘It can’t come fast enough.
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It → come → ?
‘They’ve dangled this thing in front of our faces for nearly two years now.
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They → dangle → years
Most people who went for it [in the first round] didn’t get it.
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who → go → it
If the Department is serious about getting rid of people, there are plenty of takers.
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Department → rid → takers
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we → accept → article
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