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RTÉ HAS CONFIRMED that it was forced to write-down €3.6 million on a partly failed IT system.
Details of the write-down were published this evening by The Currency and later confirmed by RTÉ.
The IT system, which had been intended to replace its finance and HR systems, was funded from the proceeds of the sale of around nine acres of land at its Donnybrook campus.
In a statement this evening, RTÉ said the “purpose of the IT system was to replace five legacy systems that were used for Finance and HR which were at or near end of life”.
One of them had been installed in 2001, while another two were installed in 2003.
The Currency reported that details of the write-down were relayed to the Department of Arts and Media last month.
This was in response to a request sent to all agencies under the Department’s remit to provide details of capital projects which cost more than €500,000 and were either abandoned or materially failed to deliver.
RTÉ said that the contract for the new IT system followed an “extensive public procurement process in 2018” and that two suppliers were appointed to the project.
It added that it chose the tender which was the cheapest proposal and that “it was considered that this proposal would be the most economically advantageous to RTÉ”.
However, RTÉ said that “issues arose almost immediately” and that by January 2019, the project was already behind schedule.
RTÉ pointed to “resource constraints” within the public broadcaster and added that the “build quality of the product in testing did not meet expectations and over-ambitious timelines”.
RTÉ added that this was all “compounded with the outbreak of Covid-19”.
The contract was terminated but restarted in August 2022.
In March 2023, the new finance system went live but the HR elements were not delivered.
RTÉ said that the “majority of the impairment relates to the effort to deliver the HR part of the project, amounting to €2.3m”.
It added: “The remaining €1.3m related to the delay and effort in delivering the finance element of the project.”
The broadcaster added that this “impairment is very much an exception in the context of extensive projects delivered annually by RTÉ”.
RTÉ also remarked that “corporate governance reforms introduced over the past 18 months are designed to mitigate against the risk of recurrence of such issues”.
A Department spokesperson told The Currency that Minister P atrick O’Donovan met with the RTÉ director general Kevin Bakhurst on 8 April to discuss “the background to the project and the reasons for the failure to deliver on the original scope of the project”.
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Why six suspended ? We have to care about him because of his age ? Did he care about his victim because of her age ?
He should rot in prison until death plain and simple.
Totally agree, logic of the “justice system” sometimes eludes me.
Well said , f m
At least its an improvement on the singing priest only getting 1 year. He should have to spend the suspended part with a tag that that doesn’t let him out on the street or or within 50 metres of a child.
Oh for F*CKS SAKE 6 years suspended??? WA*KERS
If he gets 12 years he should serve 12. Good behaviour advancing age all that crap should only be considered on the severity of the case. You can’t get much worse than this creature
Am I the only one who considers sexual offences especial against children to be worse than murder? We should have gulags for these types to rot in, and that’s only the ones not getting the chair. While attitude in our “justice” system is bollixed.
Suspending the sentence by half mean this vile piece of excrement will serve 3 years when taking into consideration of good behaviour. Hope this evil c@nt dies suffering
He will serve 4.5 years (25% remission)
If he gets 12. He should serve 12. Good behaviour and all that crap the courts spout should be considered on the severity of the case. And you don’t get much worse than that
Previous good behaviour, ie wasn’t caught before. Fcukin animal
Disgraceful. Hopefully he will rot in there
Suspended???????. What justice is this? The law is an ass in Ireland!
No one knows what this child went through its not right just because he owned up to the abuse he gets most of the jail term suspended I think he should be let rot behind bars . Evil bast.rd
He only admits everything after being arrested. So you can be a complete b@stard, but if you get caught be sure and tell the truth so we’ll go easy on you. Disgraceful.
B* stard
S(umbag. He says sorry because he got caught and gets half his sentence cancelled. Some justice.
Sentenced to 12 years in prison : proper order.
Likely facing 4.5 years : an insult.
He admitted his offences. He did not plead ‘not guilty’ and put the victim in the witness box and force her to give evidence which could have been challenged by his counsel, maybe getting him off because of ‘reasonable doubt’ about her evidence. Give the judge credit for following the sentencing guidelines and not imposing a sentence which would have been reducd on appeal.
A suspended sentence means he would only be reimprisoned is for a criminal act. Being such a well behaved pedophile, the only crime he’s likely to do is rape another child, creating another victim.
Previous good behaviour? Six years suspended is a disgrace he should be locked away until the end of his days with his genitals removed. Just because he has no previous convictions does not mean he hasn’t done this before, absolute monster.
12years six suspended wtf Should be locked in a cage and never let out
He gets 6 years, she gets life. Is there ever justice for the victim?!
Why did it happen? Because you did it. How much did he not get caught for?
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