Updated 8.35pm 

Former European Union commissioner John Dalli showed up at EU commission offices in Valletta on Friday to meet with MEPs and address what he called "absurd" claims they made in a report about the rule of law in Malta. 

In their report, published earlier this year, MEPs had raised concerns that Mr Dalli, who quit the European Commission in disgrace, was made an advisor to the Prime Minister upon his return to Malta, rather than being prosecuted for bribery and corruption.

MEPs also said they did not know if Malta's Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit had established whether Mr Dalli received any money from Dubai into his Pilatus Bank account.

Mr Dalli said the MEPs had offered him a TV interview, which he refused.

He said he insisted on a meeting with the MEPs to see “what and why you made those absurd statements which were based off Daphne Caruana Galizia's claims.”

The former EU commissioner was forced to resign in October 2012 following accusations of bribery, which he denied. 

Mr Dalli accused the MEPs of turning themselves into a "lynching mob" in a letter sent earlier this year.

Portuguese MEP Ana Gomes, German MEP Sven Giegold and Nationalist Party MEP David Casa are in Malta for one day to meet political parties, Magistrate Aaron Bugeja who is tasked with the Egrant case, and magistrate Anthony Vella, tasked with the inquiry into the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia.

The MEPs form part of an ad hoc European Parliament delegation set up to look into concerns about the rule of law in Malta. 

Following their first visit to Malta last November, delegation chair Ana Gomes had highlighted what they described as a "perception of impunity".

'Lack of respect'

Speaking at a press conference held after the meeting with Mr Dalli, MEP David Casa said the former minister and EU Commissioner had shown a "lack of respect" towards Ms Caruana Galizia during the meeting, calling her "that blogger". 

Mr Casa also accused Mr Dalli of having first alleged that Ms Caruana Galizia had threatened him, only to wade back from that claim when asked by MEPs to prove it.

"Instead, he said that 'someone who writes like her' had made the threats," Mr Casa told journalists.