Irish premier Micheal Martin will recall parliament over COVID-19 rules broken by EU trade commissioner Phil Hogan – who has apologized but said that he wouldn't be resigning.

Hogan was put under pressure to stand down by Martin and Leo Varadkar after attending an Oireachtas Golf Society dinner, where guests were accused of breaking new social distancing measures. However, an EU official close to the commissioner told Reuters that he "is not resigning."

Martin and his coalition government partners, deputy prime minister Leo Varadkar and cabinet minister Eamon Ryan, "have agreed that the Dail [lower parliament house] should be recalled," a spokesman said on Sunday.

The news came after two days of political turmoil following revelations that swathes of lawmakers and senior politicians attended the parliamentary golf society dinner in breach of coronavirus guidelines.

"It is our view that an apology is welcome but he [Hogan] also needs to account for himself and answer any questions that might arise," Leo Varadkar told RTE Radio. "Not just in relation to the dinner, but also in relation to his movements around Ireland... If he can't do that, then he needs to consider his position."

The Irish Examiner newspaper revealed 82 high-profile figures — including Hogan, a cabinet minister and a supreme court judge — attended the Oireachtas Golf Society dinner on Wednesday night. The Oireachtas is the legislature of Ireland: the president, the Dail and the Seanad or upper house.

The event was held just 24 hours after the government announced fresh COVID-19 restrictions to curb a new surge in cases, including an insistence that no "formal or informal events or parties" be held at hotel restaurants.

It was reported that attendees at the dinner sat at tables of 10 and organizers erected a room divider in a bid to skirt legislation banning gatherings of more than 50. Police said on Friday that they had opened an investigation into the event for alleged breaches of that same legislation.

Martin and Varadkar, the head of Fine Gael, the party for which Hogan previously served as a lawmaker, said they had "asked him to consider his position" on Saturday.

"They both believe the event should never have been held, that the commissioner's apology came late and that he still needs to give a full account and explanation of his action," said a statement to the Sunday Independent newspaper.

A spokesman for Hogan told state broadcaster RTE on Saturday he would "reflect on" the request.

Irish agriculture minister Dara Calleary and deputy chair of the parliament's upper chamber Jerry Buttimer have both already resigned for their attendance at the event.

Hogan, a lawmaker in Ireland's lower and upper houses between 1987 and 2014, initially said he had been assured the dinner would comply with government guidelines.

The 60-year-old, who served as Ireland's environment minister from 2011 to 2014 before becoming EU trade commissioner last year, later issued a statement apologizing for "the distress caused by his participation," according to RTE.

But a spokesman for Martin said: "The commissioner's apology came late and... he still needs to give a full account and explanations of his actions."

Martin and Varadkar "both believe that the event should never have been held," he added.

A government spokesman said the request to recall parliament will be made to the chamber chair on Monday. The coalition partners agreed parliament should return after schools have reopened over the next two weeks, following their closure in March due to coronavirus.

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