We need your help now
Support from readers like you keeps The Journal open.
You are visiting us because we have something you value. Independent, unbiased news that tells the truth. Advertising revenue goes some way to support our mission, but this year it has not been enough.
If you've seen value in our reporting, please contribute what you can, so we can continue to produce accurate and meaningful journalism. For everyone who needs it.
Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
By continuing, you are indicating that you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.
LABOUR TD IVANA Bacik has apologised for attending a controversial party at the Merrion Hotel in Dublin last month.
The party, hosted by former minister Katherine Zappone, took place in an outdoor area of the hotel and was attended by 50 people.
The event was also attended by Tánaiste Leo Varadkar, who last week apologised for his actions.
The event attracted considerable criticism and the controversy led to a clarification of the rules around outdoor hospitality on Friday, with 200 now allowed gather at an event, with live music.
In a statement this evening, the newly elected TD said: “I confirmed last week that I was briefly in attendance for approx. 15/20 minutes at an outdoor event organised by Katherine Zappone on 21st July.”
“I understood the event was within the regulations but regret my brief attendance in the circumstances, and apologised for being there.”
In the statement, Bacik said that Labour leader Alan Kelly had accepted her apology.
She was elected to the Dáil after a by-election last month.
The event at the Merrion Hotel was held by Zappone six days before she was appointed by the Government as a UN special envoy, a role she stepped back from following the controversy.
Earlier today, Green Party leader Eamon Ryan said that Varadkar’s attendance at the event has “undermined public confidence”.
“I actually think this whole controversy has undermined public confidence and it’s our job then to try and restore that, by making sure we get the further reopening of the country right, and I think we can and will do that,” he told RTÉ radio.
Chief whip and Fianna Fáil TD Jack Chambers also admitted that the Merrion Hotel controversy was “not good for the Government”.
He told Newstalk Breakfast: “I acknowledge and appreciate the huge frustration and anger that the last number of days have caused.
“I welcome the fact that the Tánaiste has apologised directly to the industry, and expressed his regret about the controversy.”
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Alan Kelly accepted Bacik’s apology? This is what Kelly had to say about Golfgate
“Labour leader Alan Kelly said those who organised and attended the golfing dinner “have let Ireland down in one of the toughest periods in our history”. Another spoofer.
@GrumpyAulFella: surely you can understand the difference between the two events.
@james comiskey: there is no difference. Politician’s should know better
@GrumpyAulFella: there all spoofers
@Ian O Hara: not one of the main parties, in government or opposition, has completely abided by the guidelines. It’s one set of guidelines for politicians, the ruling classes and Jackie Healey-Rae. It’s another for the rest of us.
@GrumpyAulFella: Don’t know about you but I’m totally discombobulated by this risible behaviour, in fact it’s so bumfuzzling I think I’ll contact citizens advise.
@GrumpyAulFella: Mr ‘you will all pay the new water charges or get behind bars’ himself
@GrumpyAulFella: Jackie Healey-Rae died in December 2014, not sure what this has to do with him!!
@Gerard Hanley: golfgate was an indoor event of 81 people. The Merrion was an outdoor event of 50 where everyone was vaccinated. There were more people in my local beer garden the other night
@james comiskey: the outraged like to be outraged.
@james comiskey: But it didn’t take the Attorney General to clarify guidelines concerning the people in your local. How could the ordinary folk be aware of the guidelines when Varadkar as a member of Government decided these guidelines which he didn’t understand himself. They were not long in putting Eamon Ryan back in his box, when it was discovered he also attend a little party.
Golfgate: Ministers broke rules.
Response: The Ministers were wrong and had to go.
Merriongate: Leo broke rules.
Response: The rules were wrong and had to go.
It all makes perfect sense!
@James Quinn: what were the covid restrictions at the time of the event?
@James Quinn: You’re forgetting another high profile breach that occurred last year
@James Quinn: what about Funeralgate???
@GrumpyAulFella: it will be a cold day in hell before I ever vote for SF, just wanted to make that clear. But if you think people attending a funeral to pay last respects and people going partying with their pal to celebrate their “new job” are comparable it speaks volumes about you. Neither event should have had ministers and elected TDs in attendence as they should be leading by example. But I know which one I can have a bit of respect and show some leeway for. Maybe its just me, but scoring political points against people going to somones funeral (although wrong) is classless at best.
@Gordon Larney: what was up with updating the guidelines after this event was public knowledge?
@Sean Finnegan: is that a labour deflection because a newly elected Labour official is already a crony?? Your twitter seems u were really happy when she was elected
@Sean Finnegan: Labour lost all credibility in 2011 can’t believe I voted for them f00ls
@James Quinn: we’ve come a long way from the corruption of GUBU if this is the most pressing topic of the day
@Clubhouse Barman.: It took the Attorney General to give his opinion on what the guidelines entailed. The guidelines sanctioned by the government, yet it Seems Varadkar who had imput into the decision of the rules of the guidelines didn’t understand them . When it doubt blame the hotel and fall back on the Attorney General, whose conveniently was appointed by F.G. Bit of controversy attached to that appointed also.
And I thought she was a paragon of virtue! Then again I forgot that despite all the virtue signalling she’s basically just another ‘do as I say not as I do’ politician…
@Ciaran O’Mara: for breaking guidelines that the rest of us have been glued to for the past 18 months. Remember, Ivana is now a member of the House of Parliament, the body of elected representatives tasked with introducing and passing legislation, from which regulations are drafted and guidelines informed. If our rulers don’t adhere to guidelines then why should anyone else?
@Ciaran O’Mara: Whether she did anything wrong or not is irrelevant as is her apology. The optics of the situation are what’s important and clearly weren’t the best especially given her party leader’s statements about ‘Golfgate’. As a public representative how she is perceived by the public is paramount. The majority of the public definitely don’t view anyone who attended this ‘do’ in a good light as they feel the whole thing smacked of an attitude of privilege and was essentially a display of contempt towards the rest of us. Perception is all that matters…
This explains Kelly’s relative silence
We’re all in this together, especially if you’re FG, FF or Labour. Not a discernible difference between them.
@Bingobango: And SF. You seem to forget Mary Lou broke covied restrictions to leave the country and attend a funeral.
@Bingobango: don’t forget the vast majority of indo’s from the Healy Rae’s to the anti migrants one in Wexford. Waste of a vote. The country needs a change.
@Roy Dowling: Ah yes, all this is obviously the fault of Sinn Fein, having a great ould time with their mate in the Merrion. How did I miss that whopper?
@Bingobango: who Said it was SF fault. But tell me whats the difference between a labour TD breaking covid restrictions to go to the event at the merrion and a Sinn Fein TD breaking covid regulations to leave the country and attend a funeral.
@Roy Dowling: Absolutely zero difference. I was merely pointing out that this newly elected TD has shown herself to be just another friend of the establishment when she’s actually supposed to be, at the very least, giving the impression that she is in the opposition. I hope you’re happy with my explanation because I have a funny feeling you know exactly what I meant but had to shoehorn SF in there somehow. It’s a skill in itself I must admit.
@Roy Dowling: the difference is an event and a funeral. While neither are right I would have a tiny bit more tolerance for the funeral, but saying that, the amount of people who couldn’t go to their own families funeral was horrible. We need a complete overhaul of our so called leaders!!
@Bingobango: Reason I shoehorned SF into this “somehow” is clear. You first lines ‘we’re all in this together’. Mary Lou attending a funeral in the North showed she didn’t the rules applied to her and she wasn’t in it with with. But somehow you ignore that because she not FF, FG or labour.
@Eadaoin Cummings: My thoughts exactly on your last sentence.
@Roy Dowling: Is it possible that I was using the phrase “we’re all in this together” to show that FG, FF and Labour are one and the same, socially, economically and politically?
@Roy Dowling: Its all SF fault, will ya stop for god sake
@Dave: Again point out where I said it’s all SF fault. I’m simply asking a question. Why is a labour TD breaking covid restrictions different to a Sinn Fein TD breaking coivd restrictions?
@Roy Dowling: Bingo has already answered that Roy in an above reply. Zero difference
Didn’t take her long to confirm she’s just like all the rest. Has a great set of principles. Not one of them give a damn about the ordinary person
@Declan Moran: If you don’t like her current principles she has others.
If anything, it shows us who she rubs shoulders with.
I really don’t think any of them actually get just how much this has annoyed people, we have made huge sacrifices to try and tackle Covid 19, many have lost their livelihoods, some even their lives, but our Political leaders can get ambiguous rules “updated,” or “clarified,” to suit themselves.
They also don’t seem to get that we all know that this little get together was to celebrate an appointment for a made up job that stunk to high heaven of the worst of cronyism.
As for undermining confidence, sorry there Ivana, but I had next to none in any of ye to begin with.
@Brian McDonnell: the meriongate was July 21st and the rules are changed a few days later something fishy in Leo’s socks
Is Leo still there?
Lads he’s having his fingers prized off the trappings of power as we speak.
Not our tanaiste.
@Declan: Who is your Tanaiste then?
@Roy Dowling: Let’s start with cleaning house. ‘Dead man’ walking. Only question is which senior fine Gael minister is going to pull the trigger. They’re all looking at each other…
@Declan: what has any of that got to do with who your tanaiste is?
@Roy Dowling: The person with the biggest brown envelope which move’s all the strings and it ain’t Leo
@Roy Dowling: Part time Tanaiste…Will he make Part time Taoiseach?
Didn’t take her long to get her snout in the trough. Another smoked salmon socialist preaching to the unwashed.
@Paul Shepherd: what is she apologising for? This has gone beyond farce.
@Ciaran O’Mara: the same thing that the Tanaiste has apologised for.
Ivana bacik your apology is not good enough
As a newly elected member of the Dail you would think she would know better
Getting tired of the elites doing what they like
Roll on Election ’22
She’s in the big leagues now and she’ll do as she pleases.
On and on and on it goes.
@Louis O’Dwyer: said it earlier, it’s the gift that keeps on giving
Jasus only in the Oireachtas a wet week and apologising already.
Is everyone forgetting that the event she attended was for a failed TD that tried to defraud the state by claiming she drove 25km to the dail when she was only 22km away – she is not a moral person and proved this by organising a event whilst the country is in pandemic mode – Shane on her and all that attended – a apology is not enough
What gets me about all of this is all through the pandemic we have had Taoiseach, Tánaiste and other ministers standing at podiums announcing all the restrictions and especially for the lifting of any restrictions except for, funny enough, the change to the rules regarding outdoor gatherings, that had to be done by the Attorney General AFTER they were found out.
She should resign like Leo is going to
@Paul O Faolain: You on the Smarties again hahaha you are a great comedian
I think it is fair to say they’ll were different badges but drink the same coolade. I wouldn’t trust one of them. Was it muted that Kanpur was the real opposition? Joke the lot of them.
Politicians who break the rules should be sacked it cannot be one rule for them and a different one for the ordinary people the Politicians of this country are shameful
@Margaret Kane: They will always get away with it because they can depend on their followers re electing them and until that changes, nothing will change. I am surprised at Alan Kelly, will wait and see if he appoints her as spokesperson on ….. Or if he punishes her. That God there isn’t a climate crisis to take away from their ‘ freedom of expression’
Too late and two faced
Political apologies are a disgrace, if we all are in this #Covid together then no political person’s should be excluded, it’s simple and basic, no civil servants or Media experts in required, just be a normal law abiding citizen.
Fair play for the apology. Leo too arrogant to go that far.
@Munster1: a token apology without remorse is not good enough – as Alan Kelly said about golf gate – they have let the country down – yet there will be no recompense. As a new TD she has now shown that she is the same as the rest of them. At least in the UK a MP would resign
@lorcmulv: resign for what? She’s fully vaccinated at an outdoor event of 50 people
@james comiskey: I think this needs a Journal Factcheck. As far as I can see they didn’t break any rules!
@james comiskey: at the time of the event only outdoor dining in tables of 6 were allowed – no parties apart from outdoor weddings – this was only clarified and changed after merriongate – the whole country is and was in pandemic mode with family not able to visit dying relatives, attend funerals or visit friends – what gives anyone paid from the public purse the right to organise or attend events in the middle of a pandemic – knowing a tomato is a fruit does not mean it should be allowed in a fruit salad – she and the other TDS who attended golf gate and the Merioneth should be sacked never mind resign.
So are events of up to 200 people allowed
Under the law, yes, according to the Attorney General. However, the current Fáilte Ireland guidelines don’t clearly reflect this. For instance all three documents for hotels, restaurants and pubs respectively currently say “multiple tables cannot be booked”.
With a limit of six adults to a table or 15 people including children this means if the existing guidelines are followed there won’t be outdoor events of up to 200 people under the current guidelines. There is also the apparent contradiction in the guidelines for restaurants and pubs which say in one breath that a maximum of 200 attendees can attend the majority of venues for organised outdoor events and in another that “organised events are currently not permitted” when talking about meetings.
@lorcmulv: I’m not so sure about that. I think people are confusing guidelines and regulations. I think they were compliant with the regulations, which is really all that matters, but not with the guidelines, which was the industry’s interpretation of the regulations. Hence the AG’s involvement to give a plain English view of the regulations. Something like that anyway.
@GrumpyAulFella: whether they were guidelines or regulations does not give public representatives the moral right to have or attend functions whilst the country is in pandemic mode that is adversely affecting a lot of the population and going to affect us all well into the future. Again a token apology does not cover it having whether or not it was legally sound – it is not morally acceptable
Politicians should know better. when the moment the average Joe sees this coming from those supposed to follow the rules without question, it gives other people not in power the green light to do what they please. those in authority left or right wing should set the example. And yet they have failed that AGAIN. We need to hold our elected officials accountable for their actions, in office and out. They are in the limelight.
Why are they apologetic if no rule/guideline/law was broken ?
Proof, if it were needed, that they all treat the population with utter contempt
I’m surprised the parties didn’t issue a set of internal covid rules which were more stringent than the public rules. It’s all about optics, they should have seen this might look bad.
Funny how all the politicians think an apology solves everything and think we forget
Some boring Party.
Nobody stayed more than 15 minutes.
If this was within the rules she would not be apologizing
Funny how all the politicians think an apology solves everything and think we forget
Not five minutes in the job, and she’s already behaving like a self entitled government cronie.
Can anyone give a valid reason for her to stay in her position other than a apology that if it was not legally needed then why was it offered – it is not acceptable and should not be tolerated by anyone in public office.
Alan accepted her apology.. That’s OK so.
Muppet
Will someone please tell me what was the get together for ??
@Karl Phillips: z week gxurxoysztyj f x fb x fb
@Karl Phillips: it was a piss up.
I reckon all these TDs go to a school of “How to say Sorry” after their misgivings
Funny how all the politicians think an apology solves everything and think we forget
Feel sorry for all those who fell for the spleen over the years that Bacik is “different” is “principled” etc. She is just another me feiner out to feather her own nest,
Funny how all the politicians think an apology solves everything and think we forget
F..k of.f
Is it not hypocrisy demanding her head? If we all lost our jobs because we flouted a rule or failed to keep 2 metres away from everyone else or travelled 2.1km away from our homes lat year, there would be precious few working. People need to worry about things that actually matter. The word bandwagon comes to mind. And I’d be no great supporter of the lady, but the comments here are just typical whining and begrudgery by the usual suspects.
@Paul Whitehead: this was not a house party and the event was organised by and for people that are being paid out of state funds and as such should be even more stringent in their actions
@Paul Whitehead: yes indeed you are right we all probably sailed close to the regulations from time to time but the difference was we could be confronted by a Garda and if our excuse didn’t please the Garda we were then subject to fines/ prosecution. The ordinary joe soap doesn’t have the Attorney General on speed dial in his/ her phone. Ivanka no doubt followed golfgate closely and may have even offered an opinion or two on it but regardless knew the public outrage that followed it so an apology doesn’t cut it.
One question that also needs to be asked was when was the event booked? The updated regulations only came into effect 2 days before the event most people organising events do so well in advance especially if your travelling from America
@Paul Whitehead: Unfortunately the whining and begrudgery as you put it is the anger of people who abided by the guidelines. The same guidelines that Varadkar had to get the Attorney General to decipher and get him off the hook.
Well DBS did well for this little piggy, snout straight into the trough.
Use precise geolocation data. Actively scan device characteristics for identification. Store and/or access information on a device. Personalised advertising and content, advertising and content measurement, audience research and services development.
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work.
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then these services may not function properly.
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we will not be able to monitor our performance.
Cookies, device or similar online identifiers (e.g. login-based identifiers, randomly assigned identifiers, network based identifiers) together with other information (e.g. browser type and information, language, screen size, supported technologies etc.) can be stored or read on your device to recognise it each time it connects to an app or to a website, for one or several of the purposes presented here.
Advertising presented to you on this service can be based on limited data, such as the website or app you are using, your non-precise location, your device type or which content you are (or have been) interacting with (for example, to limit the number of times an ad is presented to you).
Information about your activity on this service (such as forms you submit, content you look at) can be stored and combined with other information about you (for example, information from your previous activity on this service and other websites or apps) or similar users. This is then used to build or improve a profile about you (that might include possible interests and personal aspects). Your profile can be used (also later) to present advertising that appears more relevant based on your possible interests by this and other entities.
Advertising presented to you on this service can be based on your advertising profiles, which can reflect your activity on this service or other websites or apps (like the forms you submit, content you look at), possible interests and personal aspects.
Information about your activity on this service (for instance, forms you submit, non-advertising content you look at) can be stored and combined with other information about you (such as your previous activity on this service or other websites or apps) or similar users. This is then used to build or improve a profile about you (which might for example include possible interests and personal aspects). Your profile can be used (also later) to present content that appears more relevant based on your possible interests, such as by adapting the order in which content is shown to you, so that it is even easier for you to find content that matches your interests.
Content presented to you on this service can be based on your content personalisation profiles, which can reflect your activity on this or other services (for instance, the forms you submit, content you look at), possible interests and personal aspects. This can for example be used to adapt the order in which content is shown to you, so that it is even easier for you to find (non-advertising) content that matches your interests.
Information regarding which advertising is presented to you and how you interact with it can be used to determine how well an advert has worked for you or other users and whether the goals of the advertising were reached. For instance, whether you saw an ad, whether you clicked on it, whether it led you to buy a product or visit a website, etc. This is very helpful to understand the relevance of advertising campaigns.
Information regarding which content is presented to you and how you interact with it can be used to determine whether the (non-advertising) content e.g. reached its intended audience and matched your interests. For instance, whether you read an article, watch a video, listen to a podcast or look at a product description, how long you spent on this service and the web pages you visit etc. This is very helpful to understand the relevance of (non-advertising) content that is shown to you.
Reports can be generated based on the combination of data sets (like user profiles, statistics, market research, analytics data) regarding your interactions and those of other users with advertising or (non-advertising) content to identify common characteristics (for instance, to determine which target audiences are more receptive to an ad campaign or to certain contents).
Information about your activity on this service, such as your interaction with ads or content, can be very helpful to improve products and services and to build new products and services based on user interactions, the type of audience, etc. This specific purpose does not include the development or improvement of user profiles and identifiers.
Content presented to you on this service can be based on limited data, such as the website or app you are using, your non-precise location, your device type, or which content you are (or have been) interacting with (for example, to limit the number of times a video or an article is presented to you).
With your acceptance, your precise location (within a radius of less than 500 metres) may be used in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
With your acceptance, certain characteristics specific to your device might be requested and used to distinguish it from other devices (such as the installed fonts or plugins, the resolution of your screen) in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
Your data can be used to monitor for and prevent unusual and possibly fraudulent activity (for example, regarding advertising, ad clicks by bots), and ensure systems and processes work properly and securely. It can also be used to correct any problems you, the publisher or the advertiser may encounter in the delivery of content and ads and in your interaction with them.
Certain information (like an IP address or device capabilities) is used to ensure the technical compatibility of the content or advertising, and to facilitate the transmission of the content or ad to your device.
Information about your activity on this service may be matched and combined with other information relating to you and originating from various sources (for instance your activity on a separate online service, your use of a loyalty card in-store, or your answers to a survey), in support of the purposes explained in this notice.
In support of the purposes explained in this notice, your device might be considered as likely linked to other devices that belong to you or your household (for instance because you are logged in to the same service on both your phone and your computer, or because you may use the same Internet connection on both devices).
Your device might be distinguished from other devices based on information it automatically sends when accessing the Internet (for instance, the IP address of your Internet connection or the type of browser you are using) in support of the purposes exposed in this notice.
The choices you make regarding the purposes and entities listed in this notice are saved and made available to those entities in the form of digital signals (such as a string of characters). This is necessary in order to enable both this service and those entities to respect such choices.
have your say