EC calls for more transparency at RTÉ

The European Commission has said that the Irish national public service broadcaster, RTÉ, needs to be more transparent about exactly how it spends its public funds.

The EC report recommended that the Irish government reveal exactly how the licence fee in Ireland is spent by the broadcaster. Rival station TV3 complained in 1999 that financial support for RTÉ amounts to State Aid at levels that would violate Treaty regulations.

Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes called for the drafting of a document that would precisely define the broadcaster's remit, and also said that a mechanism should be implemented to ensure RTÉ only gets public funding to fulfil its public service functions.

"RTÉ has welcomed the proposal of Government to introduce new legislation to clarify the public service remit and its regulation, and is committed to working, in every appropriate way, to facilitate the progress of this legislation," the broadcaster said in a statement after the report was published.