Ireland’s Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney has ordered his secretary-general to investigate an “impromptu” party with champagne held during lockdown restrictions in June 2020, his spokesperson said Sunday.
“On January 13, he asked his current secretary-general to report on the impromptu gathering in the department in June 2020 and has asked for that report by the end of the month,” his spokesperson told the Irish Independent.
At least 20 maskless civil servants celebrated Ireland winning a seat on the U.N. Security Council, at a time when indoor gatherings of more than six people were banned in Ireland.
Coveney has denied any involvement in the gathering, but he admitted being made aware of the incident on the night it happened and failing to act. The Department of Foreign Affairs has apologized for the incident and acknowledged it broke COVID-19 rules.
The investigation follows a similar inquiry into the U.K. government for repeatedly flouting COVID-19 rules over allegations of multiple parties at No. 10 Downing Street when the public was required to stay home.
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