The Dáil's spending watchdog is demanding to see the written agreement between the Government and RTÉ on public funding for the broadcaster. Committee members want the document rather than summaries of it, so they can examine the exact terms under which money has been committed. Their interest traces back to the payments scandal that engulfed RTÉ and left the public with deep doubts about how the station manages its finances. Since then, the State has propped the broadcaster up with successive support packages while wider funding reform has moved slowly. Members of the committee argue they cannot hold the spending to account without seeing what was actually signed. The expectation is that the Government will produce the paperwork, and deputies have signalled they will keep asking until it does. Government figures have defended the arrangement, saying the supports were put in place to keep RTÉ running and protect its services. Any refusal to release the document would sharpen a standoff that has already strained relations between the Oireachtas and the national broadcaster.