#Golfgate: Taoiseach calls for 'far more fulsome response' from Phil Hogan
The Taoiseach Micheál Martin has said that the holding of an 81-strong golf dinner for an Oireachtas society in Co. Galway, the day after new measures were put in place restricting such gatherings to just six people, was “very wrong”.
Mr Martin also said that EU Commissioner Phil Hogan should be "far more fulsome" in his response to the public's reaction to the issue.
The Taoiseach, in his first public appearance to comment on the matter said: “I understand fully why people are so angry at what happened at that Oireachtas Golfing Society dinner.”
Speaking on RTÉ television’s Six One News last night, Mr Martin described the attendance of those concerned, which led directly to the resignation this morning of then agriculture minister Dara Calleary, as being a “monumental error of judgement”.
“I’m deeply, deeply disappointed myself at what transpired because it fundamentally compromises and potentially undermines the clear communication of the public health message that we need to reduce our contacts.”
With regard to Mr Calleary’s resignation, the Taoiseach said that in doing so the Mayo TD had shown “leadership and accountability”.
“That’s an important message in itself to give when something like this happens; to recognise the hurt and anger of many people across the country,” he said.
“It’s very, very important that those who make the rules observe and adhere to those rules.”
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Mr Martin did not agree that he had been “embarrassed” by what happened, but said that he had been “deeply annoyed and upset by what happened”.
“I didn’t expect it in any shape or form,” he said.
He argued that the lifting of the localised lockdown on counties Laois and Offaly from Friday shows “that if you apply the measures you can get a good result and you can get the numbers down”.
Regarding the attendance of the event at the Clifden Station House Hotel by EU Commissioner Phil Hogan, who had earlier stated that his “clear understanding” had been that the event “would be in compliance with the Government’s guidelines”, the Taoiseach said that he believed that Mr Hogan “should apologise and I think he should be far more fulsome in his response to this”.
He added however that as a member of the European Commission Mr Hogan is “not within the jurisdiction of the Irish Government”.
Nevertheless, he said he “would like a meaningful response to the mood of the public and the anger of the public towards this issue”.
The Commissioner subsequently issued a statement from a spokesperson delivering an apology “for the distress caused by his participation”.
Mr Martin declined, however, to comment meaningfully upon the attendance at the event of Seamus Woulfe, a Supreme Court justice and until recently Ireland’s Attorney General, due to the separation of powers between the Oireachtas and the judiciary.
With regard to allegations of strained relations within Government between the three coalition parties, Mr Martin said that he had met with his fellow leaders Leo Varadkar and Eamon Ryan on Friday morning and that the trio are “very resolute in our determination to see this through because the fundamental objective of this Government is to get us through Covid”.
“If you look at the actual substance of the last seven weeks it’s been extremely hectic, but a hell of a lot has been done in terms of legislation for example in July,” he said, adding that the €7.4 billion July Stimulus Programme had been “an unprecedented investment in our economy”.
