John Dalli asks European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso for an official written request demanding his resignation. Mr Dalli insists there is no resignation yet on his part.

A spokesman for the Commission says Mr Barroso had asked the former Commissioner to resign because his position was “politically untenable”.

October 23: Dalli interviewed

In an interview with The Times Mr Dalli speaks of his suspicion there may be the hidden “hand of a Maltese person” in the affair.

Mr Dalli says the Prime Minister knew about the OLAF investigation in July.

Subsequently, the Office of the Prime Minister issues a press statement saying Malta assisted the EU anti-fraud office’s investigations and the Prime Minister had been aware of this. Mr Dalli had not informed Lawrence Gonzi himself.

October 24: Unfair dismissal

Mr Barroso tells Mr Dalli to “behave with integrity”. In a press conference in Brussels, the former Commissioner says he will sue the executive over unfair dismissal.

News emerges that the chairman of the OLAF supervisory board, Christiaan Timmermans, has resigned. In Malta the Attorney General passes his conclusions on the Dalli case to the police.

October 25: OLAF resignation

An OLAF spokesman says the change of president in the supervisory board has nothing to do with the Dalli case.

He says the Maltese member on the board, Rita Schembri, had withdrawn from any work on the Dalli case to avoid a potential conflict of interest.

October 26: Two attempts

Tobacco firm Swedish Match tells The Times that Mr Zammit first approached it with a bribe request and when the request was refused he turned to snus lobbyists.

October 27: Knew about it

The Times reports on a closed-doors meeting between OLAF head Giovanni Kessler and the group coordinators of the European Parliament’s Budgetary Control Committee. It quotes Dr Kessler saying that evidence exists to prove that Mr Dalli was aware that Mr Zammit was asking for money in his name.