RTÉ told to take 'lead' in licence fee collection contract

Minister for Communications Noel Dempsey has told RTÉ that it will have to agree its own contract with An Post for the collection of the television licence fee in future.

The contract is currently agreed and negotiated between Mr Dempsey's department and An Post and the revenue is simply passed on to RTÉ. However, according to a letter sent in recent days to RTÉ Authority chairman Fintan Drury, the Minister wants the State-owned broadcaster to take the "lead" in managing the contract.

The contract is due to run out shortly but Mr Dempsey is determined that RTÉ and An Post solve their differences over the contract. The licence fee currently costs €153 a year.

An Post has long complained about having to collect the revenue but it appears from the Minister's letter that the company is expected to continue in the role, at least in the short to medium term.

Under the new arrangements, RTÉ will negotiate and agree the terms of the An Post contract and oversee its execution. The terms of the contract will require the final approval of the Minister for Communications.

Negotiations between RTÉ and An Post could prove acrimonious. RTÉ executives have long voiced the view that An Post could do better at collection and cut down on evasion rates. In response, An Post has talked about the resources needed to provide the service and the bad image it acquires when trying to chase up non-payers.

In the 2003 RTÉ annual report, the then chairman of the authority, Paddy Wright, drew attention to what he described as An Post's poor performance in collecting the licence fee.

"The authority has long been concerned with the efficiency of the television licence fee collection system," he wrote.

He pointed out that An Post was trying to withdraw from providing the service without any consultation with RTÉ.

The new arrangements put in place by Mr Dempsey will be reviewed in two years. The Minister is currently drawing up a Broadcasting Bill and it is understood the subject of licence fee collection may also be considered in this bill.

In an attempt to remove differences between RTÉ and An Post over the collection issue, the department set up a liaison group a few months ago to improve collection rates. Executives from RTÉ and An Post are members of this group.