Former Fine Gael leader Alan Dukes
This morning.
On RTE’s Today with Sarah McInerney, former Fine Gael leader Alan Dukes said Fine Gael’s EU Commissioner Phil Hogan and Fine Gael supporter, Supreme Court judge Seamus Woulfe should not resign.
Yet he said it was “absolutely inevitable” and correct that Dara Calleary and Jerry Buttimer resigned.
He said:
“They are people with significant political offices who should have been giving an example to everybody else.”
But in respect of Mr Hogan and Justice Woulfe, he said:
“Government officers should certainly resign. I don’t think there’s a case for Phil Hogan to resign. It’s an egregiously stupid thing for him to have done and similarily for Seamus Woulfe. But I don’t think that, in any way, they’re in the same position in relation to public opinion and the public action we need to take in this country to deal with this.”
Ms McInerney pointed out that Justice Woulfe broke the health guidelines.
Mr Duke replied:
“I’m sorry I don’t think that this event, in any way, calls into question his judgment as a Supreme Court judge. The case for Dara Calleary and Jerry Buttimer is completely different.”
In addition, at one point, Ms McInerney, who is presenting her final Today show today, told listeners:
“It wasn’t just Phil Hogan, it wasn’t just Seamus Woulfe, former broadcaster Sean O’Rourke was there as well and others. And we’d be happy to hear from any of them and if they would like to come on the show before 12 o’clock, we will make space to speak to them.”
Earlier: Resigned
Meanwhile…
I enjoyed that little exasperated "jaysis" from Sarah McInerney there! #golfgate pic.twitter.com/SMSk7hLAOq
— Peter Branigan (@PeterBranigan) August 21, 2020
Sean O’Rourke gave many a grilling over his years on that very RTE radio slot. Sarah McInerney invited any attendee at the dinner to speak on the programme. I would have thought thi
Sorry…. I would have thought he would have commented on his former show
Alan Dukes (of Hazard) isn’t the best to be pontificating, he didn’t exactly cover himself in glory with his work at Anglo Irish from what I remember…
Yep, correct.
A trough merchant speaking of other trough merchants.
True that!
I for one am reassured to learn that the leas-cathaoirleach of the Seanad requires superior judgement and a better command of public trust and confidence than a judge of the Supreme Court.
Ah yeah. And anyway, what would/should a Supreme Court judge know about rules and ethics?
Good to know that the ability to understand and follow rules is not an important element of the Supreme Court job.
I’d say the other SC judges are unimpressed.
They were unimpressed enough by his appointment in the first place.
wasn’t seamus woulfe the attorney general at the time the punishment for breach of lockdown laws were passed? was he not involved in drafting that legislation?
Yes.
It was FG who installed Phil Hogan in Europe. It’s up to them to smarten up and call on him to resign.
I guess Varadkar has be3n reading Broadsheet (that’s of course if the report below is true). Himself and Michilín have asked Bully Boy Hogan to consider his position. Now the EU should follow suit.
https://www.rte.ie/news/politics/2020/0822/1160647-golf-dinner-coronavirus/
How do you know what they little people think about phill did you ask any of them
The Ceann Comhairle thinks that the problem is the golf society. O’Fearghaíl would have us think that it’s not the people and mindset involved that are the problem with this, and that it’s the existence of a golf society.
Another one with his finger on the pulse. Aren’t we some lucky to be blessed with that kind of loolah?