According to Arnold Cassola (TMID, 18 October 2007) we were “a little bit too rash in condemning Mr Prodi” after he singled out Malta when complaining on Italy’s share of seats in the European Parliament.

For the record, we issued our statement after verifying the source article in the Italian newspaper Il Giornale, and with a person who was present at the meeting when Mr Prodi made his comments. So we had first-hand information and we hardly needed to check the ownership of the newspaper, as Arnold Cassola ludicrously suggests.

If Mr Prodi has now retracted his comments or changed his mind, it is fine by us. But we fail to understand why Arnold Cassola is so upset at us for reacting promptly to safeguard our country’s interests rather than let the story simmer in the European media. Indeed, we expected him to do likewise rather than wait for us before taking the cue.

Simon Busuttil MEP

David Casa MEP

Brussels