Radio New Zealand will cut around 58 jobs after posting a loss of NZ$11.8 million for the 2026 financial year, more than 25 times the shortfall it had expected, the public broadcaster has revealed in its annual report.

The loss, for the year to June 2026, was far above the NZ$470,000 deficit RNZ had forecast. Its board has ordered an independent review into how the broadcaster’s finances went so badly wrong.

New RNZ chair Brent Impey, who took up the role in July, described the position as “incomprehensible” and “almost inexplicable”, saying he had never seen anything like it in his career.

How the shortfall happened

Outgoing chief executive Paul Thompson said in the annual report, issued on Monday afternoon, that “internal financial reporting during the year did not accurately reflect RNZ’s underlying position”. He said the board and management had relied on that reporting, so corrective action was not taken during the year.

The errors included NZ$2 million from land sales wrongly recorded as revenue, a NZ$3.2 million overspend on personnel costs, and a NZ$6.4 million increase over budget in operating expenses, mostly linked to an Auckland office move. RNZ also faced a 7 percent cut in government funding.

RNZ recorded income of NZ$70.6 million for the year, of which NZ$67.3 million was government funding. Auditors also flagged a NZ$5 million overdraft arranged without the ministerial approval required under the Crown Entities Act.

“The full scale of the financial position only became clear in October, during completion of the year-end accounts and audit,” Thompson said.

Jobs to go by March 2027

RNZ said it would cut headcount by around 58 full-time equivalent staff, about one in six of its 342-strong workforce, by March 2027. The figure includes around 25 jobs already earmarked for cuts after earlier budget reductions.

The broadcaster is forecasting a further NZ$7.8 million deficit in 2026/27, which it called a transitional year, before returning to a sustainable footing the following year.

Thompson, who leaves at the end of 2026, said he took responsibility for the result. “Personally, I am gutted this has occurred after more than a decade of leadership of RNZ,” he said.

RNZ’s chief financial officer, Hilary Parker, quit suddenly in early October, prompting an emergency board meeting and the appointment of director Richard Dellabarca as interim chief financial officer.

Review and union response

Impey said an external review would examine why the accounting errors happened and whether senior leaders had been intentionally misled. He said the broadcaster had found no evidence of criminality or fraud, calling the episode “an organisational failure”.

The E tū union, which represents media workers, said staff should not pay for management failures, and argued no final decisions should be made before a new government is in place. New Zealand held a general election on Saturday, with final results due on 27 November.

RNZ said any changes affecting staff would follow the required employment processes, and it would cut running costs by at least 5 percent.

Sources: Mumbrella and HRD (Human Resources Director), both reporting RNZ’s annual report.