RTE unsure on land sale but to seek more job cuts

The RTÉ Authority has stopped short of deciding whether to sell up to 10 acres on its 32-acre site at Montrose, south Dublin.

The broadcaster, which is seeking a rise to €152 in its licence fee from €107, is expected to seek 200 more redundancies.

This is in addition to the 150 departures sought in an emergency cost-cutting project last December, which itself followed a net reduction of 330 since 1999.

A report to the authority by consultants KPMG Corporate Finance and Logical Strategy is understood to have said that cost savings expected from the first two redundancy packages would not be recovered in the short or medium term.

This was due to expenditure on restructuring and the cost of replacing departees with "new talent".

While the final implementation plan will not be ready before September, the size of the television division is considered likely to be reduced following the authority's indication that it would set the level of facilities "to secure output at a level of cost which is sustainable".

The authority decided against abandoning television production altogether in favour of a scaled-back commissioning role, an option put forward by KPMG and Logical.

Other job losses are expected at RTÉ's performing groups and at its publishing and interactive media units, where the authority aims to establish "smaller integrated divisions".

After a €71 million deficit last year and a slump in the advertising market, RTÉ argues it faces "death by a thousand cuts" if its application for a fee increase is refused.

It introduced a series of management changes yesterday designed to put the organisation on a more secure financial footing and to foster greater transparency.

The chairman of the authority, Mr Paddy Wright, said the organisation would justify the public funding required for "comprehensive and distinctively Irish services".

He said: "The plan is challenging for RTÉ and for everyone working here. But the authority is confident that the entire organisation will rise to that challenge and support developments that are vital for Irish public broadcasting."

The authority yesterday said it would examine RTÉ's "future requirements" for the Montrose site but reached no decision on the matter.

The 10 acres under review are in one of the most prestigious areas of the city and they are believed to be worth about €34 million. The disposal cost could be €2 million. In any event, such a sale would be subject to Government approval.

But the site is not the only asset under review. RTÉ also plans to "identify the appropriate strategy and timescale for any other asset disposal". A spokeswoman was unable to give a firm indication of what assets RTÉ was referring to.

The bulk of the changes agreed yesterday are organisational, with responsibility for editorial and business management transferring to integrating radio, television and news divisions. Such units would have responsibility for all costs and commercial revenue. Personnel and support services in centrally located divisions will be reassigned accordingly.

RTÉ also pledged to improve the effectiveness of its advertising sales for television and radio. Facing competition for advertisements from rivals such as UTV and Channel 4, it is also expected to introduce a key account management system.