EU trade commissioner Hogan resigns over Covid-19 rules breach
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Brussels — EU trade commissioner Phil Hogan stepped down on Wednesday after growing criticism that he broke virus regulations in his Ireland.
“This evening I have tendered my resignation,” he said in a statement on Wednesday. “It was becoming increasingly clear that the controversy concerning my recent visit to Ireland was becoming a distraction from my work.”
It is now up to European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen to accept his resignation. Hogan was under growing pressure over his attendance at a golf dinner last week that violated coronavirus regulations, as well as his behaviour during quarantine upon arrival in his home country.
The move came a day after Ireland’s government said that Hogan’s “delayed and hesitant” response impaired public confidence. The commission had no immediate comment.
Hogan’s resignation comes at a sensitive time in trade negotiations. The EU will have to fill a key post that has become even more high profile as a result of US President Donald Trump’s challenge to the global commercial order and a pandemic-induced shock to supply chains.
Police investigation
Hogan spent days trying to put the scandal behind him to no avail as Irish media kept reporting new potential breaches.
He apologised repeatedly for attending the dinner in Ireland during the pandemic, an event under police investigation for being in breach of rules that already led to the resignation of a minister in the country’s national government. The trade chief accepted he should not have gone, but reiterated he had been assured it complied with virus restrictions.
He lost more support after a testy interview with the national broadcaster on Tuesday that was designed to put the matter behind him. Instead it made matters worse when he insisted he had not broken any rules when he left his self-isolation for a “medical intervention” six days after arriving in the country.
The rules stipulate that travellers to the country must self-isolate for 14 days.
“It is clear that breaches of public health guidelines were made by commissioner Hogan since he travelled to Ireland,” Ireland’s Prime Minister Micheal Martin, Leo Varadkar, the deputy prime minister, and Green coalition partner Eamon Ryan said in response to his TV appearance. “People are correctly angered by these actions given the sacrifices so many have made to adhere to public health guidance.”
His departure will create all sorts of headaches for the EU’s executive arm as it gets ...
“This evening I have tendered my resignation,” he said in a statement on Wednesday. “It was becoming increasingly clear that the controversy concerning my recent visit to Ireland was becoming a distraction from my work.”
It is now up to European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen to accept his resignation. Hogan was under growing pressure over his attendance at a golf dinner last week that violated coronavirus regulations, as well as his behaviour during quarantine upon arrival in his home country.
The move came a day after Ireland’s government said that Hogan’s “delayed and hesitant” response impaired public confidence. The commission had no immediate comment.
Hogan’s resignation comes at a sensitive time in trade negotiations. The EU will have to fill a key post that has become even more high profile as a result of US President Donald Trump’s challenge to the global commercial order and a pandemic-induced shock to supply chains.
Police investigation
Hogan spent days trying to put the scandal behind him to no avail as Irish media kept reporting new potential breaches.
He apologised repeatedly for attending the dinner in Ireland during the pandemic, an event under police investigation for being in breach of rules that already led to the resignation of a minister in the country’s national government. The trade chief accepted he should not have gone, but reiterated he had been assured it complied with virus restrictions.
He lost more support after a testy interview with the national broadcaster on Tuesday that was designed to put the matter behind him. Instead it made matters worse when he insisted he had not broken any rules when he left his self-isolation for a “medical intervention” six days after arriving in the country.
The rules stipulate that travellers to the country must self-isolate for 14 days.
“It is clear that breaches of public health guidelines were made by commissioner Hogan since he travelled to Ireland,” Ireland’s Prime Minister Micheal Martin, Leo Varadkar, the deputy prime minister, and Green coalition partner Eamon Ryan said in response to his TV appearance. “People are correctly angered by these actions given the sacrifices so many have made to adhere to public health guidance.”
His departure will create all sorts of headaches for the EU’s executive arm as it gets ...
