European Commission President José Manuel Barroso has to explain why he failed to ensure the investigation on John Dalli stood before he forced his resignation, two French MEPs said yesterday as they published a damning report on the case.

“Can you imagine if this story concerned a French or German commissioner? If they had been put out in this manner? As parliamentarians we cannot accept Europe acts in this way, which is why we insist on transparency,” French MEP José Bové said yesterday.

He was addressing the press at the Castille Hotel in Valletta along with Green colleague Bart Staes.

They released a confidential report by the watchdog for the EU anti-fraud agency OLAF, raising questions about methods used in the Dalli probe.

The two were here on a “fact-finding” mission that included meetings with government officials and the Police Commissioner.

The report expresses “serious concern” over OLAF’s instructions to tobacco lobbyist Inge Delfosse to record a conversation she had with Maltese restaurateur Silvio Zammit.

“We are not here to defend Dalli or Zammit,” Mr Bové said, “but the proper rules need to be followed.”

However, he clearly indicated he feels the OLAF investigation did not produce evidence that proves any significant wrongdoing by Mr Dalli, who was forced to resign as commissioner as a result of the probe.