Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

EU trade chief Phil Hogan resigns over coronavirus ‘Golfgate’ backlash

EU trade chief Phil Hogan resigns over coronavirus ‘Golfgate’ backlash

Commissioner Phil Hogan was under growing pressure to quit after attending golf dinner in Ireland that violated Covid-19 restrictions.

The European Union’s trade chief, Phil Hogan, has resigned after growing criticism that he broke virus regulations in his native Ireland.

“This evening I have tendered my resignation as EU trade commissioner to the president of the European Commission, Dr Ursula von der Leyen,” he said in a statement.

“It was becoming increasingly clear that the controversy concerning my recent visit to Ireland was becoming a distraction from my work as an EU commissioner and would undermine my work in the key months ahead.”

It will be up to his boss 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.


European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen speaks with European Commissioner for Trade Phil Hogan in Brussels in January.


The move came a day after Ireland’s government said that Hogan’s “delayed and hesitant” response undermined public confidence. The commission had no immediate comment. The Irish Independent was first to report the news.

Hogan’s planned 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 “America First” challenge to the global commercial order and a pandemic-induced shock to supply chains.

Hogan spent day 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 and forced a minister to resign. 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 television 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 ready to go back to work.

With Hogan as its point person, the EU has been pushing the Trump administration to scrap controversial tariffs on steel and aluminium, ward off threats of more US duties on European goods including cars and negotiate a settlement to a long-standing transatlantic fight over aircraft subsidies.

The 27-nation bloc is also seeking to prop up the World Trade Organisation after its ability to adjudicate disputes was hobbled by Washington, expand a free-trade push by reaching tariff-cutting deals with Australia and New Zealand and achieve a breakthrough in negotiations to open the Chinese market more to foreign investors.

On August 21, Hogan and his US counterpart Robert Lighthizer announced a limited tariff-cutting accord and signalled the deal could pave the way for a broader improvement in transatlantic trade relations.


Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin speaks during a school visit in Dublin on Wednesday.


That US$200 million deal, which includes an EU pledge to eliminate tariffs on American lobster, came hours after the European Commission led by President Ursula von der Leyen expressed support for Hogan in the controversy over the golf dinner.

There is also the fact that this is a new commission, and losing such a key figure will shake confidence in its executive. It’s also unusual for EU commissioners to step aside. The most striking case was in 1999 when the whole European Commission under Jacques Santer resigned because of a scandal involving a French appointee.

Von der Leyen, a German ally of Chancellor Angela Merkel, may be forced by Hogan’s resignation to shuffle her team of EU commissioners once Ireland proposes a new appointee.

Von der Leyen is responsible for assigning portfolios to commissioners, of whom there is one from every member country. She may prefer to hand the trade role to one of the commissioners now handling other policy matters.

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
House Republicans Move to Defund OECD Over Global Tax Dispute
France Opens Criminal Investigation into X Over Algorithm Manipulation Allegations
Trump Steamrolls EU in Landmark Trade Win: US–EU Trade Deal Imposes 15% Tariff on European Imports
ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman says people share personal info with ChatGPT but don’t know chats can be used as court evidence in legal cases.
Intel Reports Revenue Beats but Sees 81% Rise in Losses
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
President Trump Diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency After Leg Swelling
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
Tulsi Gabbard Unveils Evidence Alleging Political Manipulation of Intelligence During Trump Administration
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Trump Announces Coca-Cola to Shift to Cane Sugar in U.S. Production
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
Moonshot AI Unveils Kimi K2: A New Open-Source AI Model
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
EU Delays Retaliatory Tariffs Amid New U.S. Threats on Imports
Trump Proposes Supplying Arms to Ukraine Through NATO Allies
US Opens First Rare Earth Mine in Over 70 Years in Wyoming
Bitcoin Reaches New Milestone of $116,000
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
Western Europe Records Hottest June on Record
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
France Requests Airlines to Cut Flights at Paris Airports Amid Planned Air Traffic Controller Strike
Poland Implements Border Checks Amid Growing Migration Tensions
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
Amazon Reaches Milestone with Deployment of One Millionth Robot
Yulia Putintseva Calls for Spectator Ejection at Wimbledon Over Safety Concerns
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
×