Broadcaster Lou Bondi has written to European Commission President Jose' Manuel Barroso, saying that Commissioner John Dalli's behaviour "might not conform with his remit as an EU Commissioner."

The letter followed a complaint by Mr Dalli to the Broadcasting Authority over part of Mr Bondi's TV programme last week.

Mr Bondi told Mr Barroso that all he had done was ask a question (to PN General Secretary Paul Borg Olivier) regarding a possible political contact between Mr Dalli and Franco Debono.

Journalistically, the question was perfectly legitimate, Mr Bondi said.

Subsequently, Mr Bondi said, Mr Dalli had requested the Broadcasting Authority to take action against him.

He also claimed that Mr Dalli had made a number of slanderous, false and unjust statements about him as a journalist.

"I wish to draw your attention to the fact that Commissioner Dalli has made similar false claims about me in the media on a number of other occasions. I have denied them all in the strongest terms. All my invitations to him to substantiate them in a court of law have been turned down.

"The behaviour of Commissioner John Dalli, your commissioner, is completely  and utterly unacceptable, " Mr Bondi said.

"The European Union is synonymous with free speech and the zealous protection of journalists' rights. Commissioner Dalli's illegitimate attempt to shackle me in the exercise of my profession clearly violates these fundamental principles".

Mr Bondi asked Mr Barroso to take cognizance of the matter and to take whatever actions he saw fit.