MEPs doubt Phil Hogan's necessity as Shane Ross calls on Seamus Woulfe to resign

MR Ross said the judiciary should be accountable for their actions like politicians. File picture. 

A former government minister believes Seamus Woulfe should resign over his attendance at last week's Oireachtas golf event which breached Covid-19 rules.

The Supreme Court has asked former Chief Justice Susan Denham to review whether Mr Justice Woulfe should have attended the dinner.

Shane Ross believes the judiciary should be just as accountable for their actions as politicians. 

Mr Ross said: "Several politicians have now resigned from their positions and Seamus Woulfe who's only been in there a few weeks is being asked the same questions I suppose. 

"And he's saying: 'No he made a mistake'. He's obviously reluctant to resign. I think it is now incumbent on him to do so and to take the same road as politicians have been quite rightly asked to take."

European Union-wide issue

Meanwhile, Midlands North West MEP Luke Ming Flanagan has said that EU Commissioner Phil Hogan “is not indispensable.” 

The controversy over the Oireachtas Golf Society event in Clifden last week “definitely damages” the Trade Commissioner ahead of the next stage of Brexit negotiations, Mr Flanagan told Newstalk Breakfast.

The MEP said that if the Commissioner remains in the job it will send out a message that “somehow he's different” to the rest of the public in terms of coronavirus restrictions.

“Whether he likes it or not, he is just as likely to get the coronavirus as anyone else and just as likely to pass it on as anyone else.

The controversy would make the Commissioner “an open target” for the UK in the Brexit talks. 

“This can be brought up every time there's a problem and thrown into the media,” he said.

Commission president Ursula von der Leyen “would not be pandering” to the public if she removed Mr Hogan from his role, added Mr Flanagan. 

“She would be listening to the public. This isn't just an Irish issue - this is a European Union-wide issue.

“The sooner we nail it with certainty that these rules are for absolutely everybody, the sooner we rid ourselves of this massive problem.”

Elsewhere, two MEPs said the Government's credibility has been so badly damaged by the refusal of Phil Hogan to stand aside that a general election is needed.

Dublin MEP Clare Daly claims the row is a "handy diversion" for the Government, and that a general election should be called immediately, a call backed by her Independents 4 Change colleague Mick Wallace.

However, Social Democrats co-leader Róisín Shortall said a general election now would be "dangerous". 

Ms Shortall said: "In normal times I think we would be having an election at this point, I don't think that is in the interests of the country now, we simply cannot afford to have a situation where there is a three or four-week election campaign and there's effectively nobody in charge. 

"I would call on the parties in Government to stop this infighting, to work together."