RTÉ will this week announce details of a new nightly news programme to be presented by Charlie Bird. Bird is currently on three weeks' holiday, following his return from the US where he had a brief stint as the station's US correspondent.

A spokeswoman for RTE said: "He is currently away on annual leave, and when he comes back he will be working on other projects as well. He has a few other things, other than the main news stuff, and there'll be more details on that shortly."

It is understood the "other projects" involve preparations to present his own nightly news and current affairs TV show. One suggestion is that the show will go head-to-head with TV3's Tonight with Vincent Browne this autumn.

Rumours circulated last month of struggles between RTÉ political correspondents and Bird over coverage of the leadership heave against Enda Kenny.

David Davin Power and David McCullagh did the bulk of the reporting, despite Bird's position as chief news correspondent. Bird instead ended up doing a voxpop of public opinion on the matter.

Richard Downes replaced Bird as US correspondent after he announced, in a documentary broadcast in January, that he was cutting the "madness" of Washington short due to homesickness.

He said: "It takes time to get to know people. I actually didn't know anybody in Washington. I had to admit I found it really lonely. I don't know what madness possessed me to take on this job. I'm a home bird rather than a Washington person."

Bird has not reported for the station since early July, and is said to be in "a lot of preparation work" for the show when he returns over the next few weeks.

He was unavailable for comment.