E.U. Trade Chief Quits, a Casualty of Dinner That Flouted Virus Rules

08/26/2020

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Steven Erlanger and Matina Stevis-Gridneff | The New York Times

BRUSSELS — Phil Hogan, the influential trade commissioner for the European Union, resigned Wednesday night over breaches to coronavirus guidelines during a recent dinner with lawmakers and other public figures in his native Ireland.

Mr. Hogan issued a statement expressing regret and making an “apology to the Irish people.’’

He was under great pressure at home after attending the dinner last week at a golf club, near Ireland’s west coast, in violation of coronavirus restrictions. The dinner, attended by about 80 politicians and government officials, violated a ban on large gatherings and fueled a sense that the powerful consider themselves above the rules they impose on others.

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