TV licence non renewal or jail?

[Equality]

People used to be jailed for robbing milk and bread to feed their starving families!

Now compare that to going to jail or prosecution for non payment of the TV licence fee.

At the same time as the courts are prosecuting thousands of the public for non payment of the TV licence, the management of the national TV broadcaster squandered funds on a number of fronts.

If it wasn’t on gifts, it was on shows no one wants to watch. Worse still, payments were made to management staff that do not meet the minimum standard of a public broadcaster who purport to represent the interests of the public. Now, some of these same people refuse to come before government committees to answer questions.

There should be no debate about the public paying a licence fee and there should be no debate about exchequer funding, the public would end up paying one way or the other and that is not in their interests especially in light of information technologies that are replacing TV broadcasting.

There is a lot of crap, especially from politicians about funding public interest broadcasting, yet the ‘national’ broadcaster is sitting on substantial assets that should be sold. If the ‘national’ broadcaster business model cannot survive financially, then it should either be reconfigured or folded in the national interests. How come a non public funded broadcaster can more than compete, yet operate out of industrial space and still represent public interests in their TV broadcasts?

Is it time the courts, the same courts that prosecute 1000s of the public for non payment of the TV licence fee, investigate the national broadcaster management, especially those that refuse to go before government committees and where there is criminal activity, prosecute to the full extent of the law, or are we all not equal in the eyes of the law?

 

[time to plan]

Don't really care to be honest.

 

[T McGibney]

Is it time the courts..., investigate the national broadcaster management,

The courts don't have investigative or prosecutorial powers

especially those that refuse to go before government committees

Hardly a basis for targeting them?

and where there is criminal activity,

The everyday term for an investigative process with a predetermined outcome is a kangaroo court.

 

[MrEarl]

Can the public make a complaint to the Gardai, and ask for them to investigate RTE?

I think it fair to say that the public do have a genuine vested interest in what has occurred in RTE, given its a state owned asset, part funded by licence fees etc.

 

[Cervelo]

Did somebody's summons for non payment of TV Licence arrive in the post yesterday

 

[T McGibney]

Can the public make a complaint to the Gardai, and ask for them to investigate RTE?

Of course they can.

But the same principle applies as if I complain to the Gardai about you (whoever you are) and ask them to investigate you.

Unless there is prims facie evidence of criminality, they will politely ignore my request.

 

[Mamamia22]

Why are RTE facing a tax bill for a lump sum given to a former member of staff? Surely it’s up to the beneficiary to have their pension tax affairs correct ?

 

[MrEarl]

Unless there is prims facie evidence of criminality, they will politely ignore my request.

At this stage, would we not all agree that there's reasonable reason to suspect that laws have been broken?

 

[BlackandBlue]

Why are RTE facing a tax bill for a lump sum given to a former member of staff? Surely it’s up to the beneficiary to have their pension tax affairs correct ?

In general terms for a "Voluntary Severance" agreement to qualify as a Redundancy situation the role must not be replaced within a specified period of time.
True redundancy has certain tax free elements.
Voluntary severance is technically classed as income.

|Hence the tax bill.

RTE is not the first employer (nor will they be the last) to make this mistake.
See Aer Lingus

 

[T McGibney]

At this stage, would we not all agree that there's reasonable reason to suspect that laws have been broken?

Is there?

Which laws, specifically?

 

[Harvard]

In general terms for a "Voluntary Severance" agreement to qualify as a Redundancy situation the role must not be replaced within a specified period of time.
True redundancy has certain tax free elements.
Voluntary severance is technically classed as income.

|Hence the tax bill.

RTE is not the first employer (nor will they be the last) to make this mistake.
See Aer Lingus

I seem to recall another semi state co. getting into a lot of hot water over a golden handshake a good few years ago.

 

[joer]

Why are RTE facing a tax bill for a lump sum given to a former member of staff? Surely it’s up to the beneficiary to have their pension tax affairs correct ?

But I'm sure that it was only resting in their account

 

[Purple]

People used to be jailed for robbing milk and bread to feed their starving families!

Thankfully we have a very generous welfare system and there is absolutely no justification for breaking the law on such grounds.

Now compare that to going to jail or prosecution for non payment of the TV licence fee.

Yes, people have to pay their taxes, and the licence fee is a tax by another name. The HSE wastes billions every year. Is that a legitimate ground for me to stop paying my income tax?

At the same time as the courts are prosecuting thousands of the public for non payment of the TV licence, the management of the national TV broadcaster squandered funds on a number of fronts.

See above and previous replies.

If it wasn’t on gifts, it was on shows no one wants to watch. Worse still, payments were made to management staff that do not meet the minimum standard of a public broadcaster who purport to represent the interests of the public. Now, some of these same people refuse to come before government committees to answer questions.

We had a constitutional referendum to give Dail committees the power of compellability and the people, in their wisdom, declined to grant them that power. This is the result.

There should be no debate about the public paying a licence fee and there should be no debate about exchequer funding, the public would end up paying one way or the other and that is not in their interests especially in light of information technologies that are replacing TV broadcasting.

I agree. There should be no debate; people should pay their taxes and we certainly should not just lump it into general taxation.

There is a lot of crap, especially from politicians about funding public interest broadcasting, yet the ‘national’ broadcaster is sitting on substantial assets that should be sold. If the ‘national’ broadcaster business model cannot survive financially, then it should either be reconfigured or folded in the national interests. How come a non public funded broadcaster can more than compete, yet operate out of industrial space and still represent public interests in their TV broadcasts?

I rarely watch RTE and I don't use it much as a news source and I regard it as deeply biased and of a low quality but we still need domestic news and media content which is publicly funded. I'd prefer fixing RTE and publicly funded broadcasting rather than getting rid of it.

Is it time the courts, the same courts that prosecute 1000s of the public for non payment of the TV licence fee, investigate the national broadcaster management, especially those that refuse to go before government committees and where there is criminal activity, prosecute to the full extent of the law, or are we all not equal in the eyes of the law?

The Courts don't investigate or prosecute anyone.

 

[thedaddyman]

I can't believe I'm saying this but the suggestion around the C&AG taking oversight of RTE does have it's merits.

Also, it is perhaps worth considering what would happen and what we would lose if RTE was to close

 

[Harvard]

I can't believe I'm saying this but the suggestion around the C&AG taking oversight of RTE does have it's merits.

Also, it is perhaps worth considering what would happen and what we would lose if RTE was to close

We're looking at another Rehab, FAI here and worse in certain regards. The Oireachtas committee is a waste of time here.

 

[Dr Strangelove]

the suggestion around the C&AG taking oversight of RTE does have it's merits.

I sincerely believe at least 2/3 less financial shenanigans would have gone on if the C&AG’s auditors had been going in once a year.

The licence fee is de facto a tax, and it beggars belief that its use is not subject to the same level of scrutiny as other taxes.

 

[Marsupial]

I sincerely believe at least 2/3 less financial shenanigans would have gone on if the C&AG’s auditors had been going in once a year.

The licence fee is de facto a tax, and it beggars belief that its use is not subject to the same level of scrutiny as other taxes.

So you reckon that Deloitte didn't do a good job? Maybe they should be asked to hand back part of their audit fee.

(I wonder when this will occur to the Chair of the PAC who has been pointing his (decommissioned) pop gun at virtually everyone else associated with this omnishambles.)

As for the TV licence itself, I regard an outlay of 44 cent a day in exchange for a range of TV and radio services as representing some of the best value for money available in Ireland today and have no issues with paying for it. That said, I'm getting utterly fed up with the number of Public Service Advertisements - almost all in the Irish language - that RTE has been spewing out in recent weeks. It appears to me to be a pretty blatant attempt to slip an additional chunk of taxpayers' funding to RTE under the guise of informing the public.

 

[Dr Strangelove]

So you reckon that Deloitte didn't do a good job?

I would never make such a claim

I do know that public sector external auditors have a very different attitude to private equivalents as it’s their taxes being spent. They also aren’t going to ever lose the audit contract.

 

[Purple]

As for the TV licence itself, I regard an outlay of 44 cent a day in exchange for a range of TV and radio services as representing some of the best value for money available in Ireland today and have no issues with paying for it.

I have an issue with the low quality, waste and strong Public Sector and pro- union bias across all of RTE but I still think we need Public Service Broadcasting (rather than the Public Sector Broadcasting we currently get).

 

[thedaddyman]

I have an issue with the low quality, waste and strong Public Sector and pro- union bias across all of RTE but I still think we need Public Service Broadcasting (rather than the Public Sector Broadcasting we currently get).

Public Sector Broadcasting are an excellent band and I recommend their Proms concert from a couple of years ago in particular

Public Service Broadcasting - BBC Proms - Live At The Royal Albert Hall

Cerys Matthews introduces cult London band Public Service Broadcasting who take to the Royal Albert Hall stage for their Proms debut. To mark the 50th annive...

www.youtube.com

on a more serious point, there is so much that would be missed, from John Creedon of an evening to Lyric FM to some of the radio documentaries. Sports coverage, the Toy Show (not the musical), Prime time investigates, the list goes on.