Television talk show host Claudette Pace has filed a judicial protest against Public Broadcasting Services for stopping her presenting her popular programme Sellili after confirming her candidature for the general election.

Ms Pace said standing on the Nationalist Party’s ticket would not impinge on the quality of her show, which dealt with current affairs and was not political in nature.

The PBS decision was “unfounded” and put a financial burden on her as broadcasting was her profession and only means of income.

Ms Pace filed the protest yesterday with Cliché Media Entertainment, the company she owns with her husband David Buttigieg.

She said that, according to an agreement between PBS and programme producer DeeMedia.TV Limited, on July 30, PBS had employed her to host Sellili between October 2012 and June 2013.

On September 17, she declared her intention to contest the election as a PN candidate.

The following day she received an e-mail saying the PBS editorial board had notified DeeMedia.TV she could no longer host the show from October 1 due to her candidature.

Such a decision, if anything, ought to have been taken by PBS and not the editorial board, which was consultative, she said. Secondly, PBS should have listened to what she had to say before taking a decision.

The decision was unfounded because her candidature would not impact the quality of her work. The election date had not even been announced and she was being stopped from exercising her profession, placing her at a financial disadvantage, she said.

Ms Pace quoted from a 2002 judgment – John Bundy and Clyde Puli v the Broadcasting Authority – in which a court decided a person expressing his intention to be a candidate was not sufficient grounds to stop them from exercising his/her profession in broadcasting.

Ms Pace called on PBS to reverse its decision within 48 hours and held it liable for damages.

Lawyer Tanya Sciberras Camilleri signed the protest.