Christine Spiteri is seeking damages worth $522,497 (€835,993) from Australia's Channel Nine over what she claims is unfair dismissal and sexual discrimination.

She is alleging that the TV channel said she was not "good enough" to host a news programme such as Nightline, thus damaging her reputation.

Ms Spiteri, who is Channel Nine's Los Angeles correspondent, has been working for the network for 14 years.

She has been told that her contract will not be renewed next month. It is understood that in July 2006 she was given the option of transferring to London or return to Sydney in a hosting role, on her existing $261,000 contract. She is alleging that neither of these opportunities materialised and that, instead, she has been offered only inferior roles.

In documents lodged with the Federal Court of Australia, Ms Spiteri has made allegations against John Westacott, the head of news at Channel Nine.

She accused him of making offensive and sexist remarks to female journalists when he addressed a group of them at a book launch last year. He is alleged to have said that they were hired only for their sex appeal.

Mr Westacott is also alleged to have declared that women reporters should do the "soft news" stories.

Ms Spiteri, 40, is of Maltese descent. Her ethnicity was disparaged by Mr Westacott who allegedly told her that "with a surname like Spiteri you should try SBS". The Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) is a publicly-funded television network that caters mostly for the special needs of the so-called "ethnic" community. It broadcasts programmes on radio in over 50 languages, including Maltese.

In an unsuccessful complaint her lawyers lodged last December with the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission, she alleged that she was the victim of discrimination on grounds of sex, race and her parental responsibilities. She is now suing for damages in the Federal Court.