WE'LL COME BAK FOR MORE WITH TUBRIDY

Loggerheads at PAC committee |  '7 untruths' are not accepted

- LOUISE BURNE

POLITICIANS have called for RTE and Ryan Tubridy to attend a meeting together to clear the air once and for all.

It came as station chiefs tried to tear testimony given by the presenter and his agent Noel Kelly to shreds during an explosive Oireachtas Public Accounts Committee meeting.

Following seven hours of testimony from Tubridy and Kelly over the ongoing pay scandal on Tuesday, RTE contradicted the majority of their statements yesterday.

One TD accused the national broadcaster of coming to the meeting and "blowing the door off the hinges".

In his opening statement, which was handed to committee members as they walked in the door of the 9.30am meeting, Deputy Director General Adrian Lynch refuted suggestions from Mr Kelly that he had never met with former Director General Dee Forbes without another member of RTE being present.

We also learnt:

• RTE boss Kevin Bakhurst does not accept Mr Tubridy's seven untruths
• Mr Kelly drafted the tripartite agreement
• Other stars working for RTE with NK Management will have their contracts examined
• The scandal has not led to any loss in commercial revenue but that future licence fee collection may be "bumpy"
• RTE believed Mr Kelly "knew" the Renault contract was no longer in place
• Mr Tubridy does not have to do six more Renault gigs IRTE has received no legal papers from Mr Tubridy or Mr Kelly.

RTE executives came in all guns blazing 48 hours after the former Late Late host and his agent attempted to lay the blame for the fiasco firmly at the feet of the broadcaster.