Qatargate, the SCANDAL deepens in Brussels/ Traveled for free, the senior official of Transport in the EU is expected to take the drastic decision

The European Commission's top transport official is expected to resign following the scandal that he had traveled for free to Qatar while his team was negotiating an aviation deal with the Gulf state.

Henrik Hololei, director general of the European Commission's transport department, is facing an internal investigation.

According to two Commission insiders and another person familiar with the matter, who asked to remain anonymous because of the sensitivity of the matter, Hololei will step down as director general of the transportation department and become a political adviser to the responsible department of the International Partnerships Commission.

A spokesman for the Commission said Hololei would receive a new door on April 1.

POLITICO revealed a month ago that Hololei flew for free with Qatar Airways nine times between 2015 and 2021. Six of the free flights occurred during the preparation of the market access agreement between the EU and Doha, and four of them were paid for by the government. of Qatar or a group with ties to Qatar.

The immediate revelations sparked a firestorm of criticism, calls for an investigation and calls for a review of the rules. The commission initially insisted that Hololei had not broken any rules, but then tightened the same rules to ensure that his behavior did not repeat itself in the future.

The event comes at a very sensitive time for the EU. Brussels institutions are already struggling to save their reputation amid a corruption scandal involving allegations that Qatar and other foreign governments paid off MEPs and others.