Labour MEP Daniel Attard has filed a complaint to the EU Ombudsman about Roberta Metsola, accusing her of nepotism for appointing Matthew Tabone, her brother-in-law, as the head of her cabinet. 

In a letter to European Ombudsman Emily O'Reilly, Attard said he has deep concerns that Tabone's appointment may constitute a "significant breach" of the high ethical standards the EP prides itself on holding. 

Metsola, has increasingly come under fire in recent days after a scathing Politico report argued that the European Parliament's ethics rules that bind top officials to declaring their conflicts of interest apply to everybody but Metsola herself. 

Tabone's most recent appointment also triggered criticism of Metsola, with Labour MEP Alex Agius Saliba calling it flat out "nepotism". 

In his letter, Attard referenced the fact that Metsola had already tried to make Tabone the head of her cabinet in 2022, but bowed to public scrutiny at the time. 

"It is profoundly troubling to observe that President Metsola, and as such the European Parliament, is once again embroiled in a situation that echoes past controversies," Attard said.

"Despite the previous scrutiny and the resultant reversal of her decision in 2022, it appears that this was only a temporary measure to appease her critics and she has now pressed on with this appointment, thereby undermining the commitment to ethical governance and transparency in the European Parliament."

Tabone joined the European Parliament in 2013 as head of Metsola's office. He later met her sister and married her in 2015.