Phil Hogan should be given 'due process' over #golfgate, says Simon Coveney

The Minsiter for Foreign Affairs said the same standards should apply for everyone. Picture: Sam Boal/Rollingnews.ie

Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney says that Phil Hogan should be given "due process" following his attendance at the golf society dinner whilst admitting that if the Commissioner cannot adequately explain his movements in to and out of Kildare his position will be "in difficulty."

In an interview with the Opinion Line, on Cork's 96FM, Minister Coveney said whilst he was "furious" about what occurred in Galway he would like to read Mr Hogan's explanations of why he was in and out of Kildare.

"I would like to be reassured by those statements that he complied as best he could with the rules and regulations linked to Covid.

"It doesn't matter whether you are a Commissioner, a President, a Taoiseach, a Minister or anybody else for that matter the same rules should apply to everybody in Ireland.

If he didn't apply those rules to himself then I think his position is in difficulty. We also have to give due process here even though people are furious.

"He has been asked to account for himself and I would like to see the detail of that before I cast any further judgement."

Mr Coveney said Mr Hogan has been an effective Commissioner and is well respected in Europe.

However, he emphasised that it cannot be the case that it is "one rule for some people and another for everybody else."

"That is and has undermined the authority in politics and in Government in the context of the challenges we all face in responding to Covid-19 and trying to keep people safe. It is really regrettable that it happened. It shouldn't have happened.

"For people like me and many others we are really really annoyed about it. The people who were at that dinner have been suspended and there has been a series of resignations as well. And obviously an awful lot of apologies.

"I can totally get why people are furious. This was the day after the Government made some very unpopular but very necessary decisions to try and contain the spread of Covid."

"Regrettable" situation

Mr Coveney says the politicians who attended the dinner showed a "disregard" for the suffering people have endured in recent months.

He insists the same standards should apply to everybody and that is why the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste asked Mr Hogan to consider his position.

"They weren't happy that it took him too long to fully apologise for being at the event. And they weren't fully clear in relation to whether or not he complied with all of the regulations not only in terms of the events he went to in Clifden but also coming in and out of the county of Kildare which has effectively been in lockdown and coming in and out of the country."

The Foreign Affairs Minister added that the whole situation was "regrettable."

"I am furious that we have to spend time trying to reassure the public that the Government is on their side. What happened last Wednesday was just so contrary to what we are trying to do with everybody.

"The idea that certain politicians see themselves as different or that the rules don't apply to them or that they don't have to lead by example at a time when we have a national ongoing public health crisis where people have got to work together.

"This is a serious mistake. It has caused a huge amount of anger and understandably so. My job and the job of others in Government is to try to reset the foundations of Government. We have made too many mistakes in the first couple of months of this Government.

"The Government and the political system are furious about what happened last week. Our job is to protect people.

"When people can't go to family funerals, when people can't hold Holy Communions, when people can't open their businesses because of restrictions.

"Then they see what happened last Wednesday night that has led to a fury."

Mr Coveney said he can understand the position of Housing Minister, Daragh O'Brien, who has called on Mr Hogan to resign.

"I can understand the sentiment voiced by Daragh this morning. He has seen his own colleague Dara Calleary step down very quickly over this. I can understand Daragh O'Brien would want consistency here and people taking responsibility for their actions.

"To be fair to Phil Hogan, he is now under the spotlight and needs to provide detailed answers -- if those answers aren't credible, I think he is in difficulty."

He appealed to the public not to flout the restrictions in anger at what occurred.

"Let's not lose focus on the important things here in trying to contain this disease. "

Mr Hogan has now supplied a detailed report on his travel in Ireland last weekend and his attendance at the dinner to EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.