Kimberly denies she was the one who asked for €60m bribe

Lawyer Gayle Kimberly, the local representative of Swedish Match this afternoon denied in court that she was the person who had asked for €50m to €60m to secure the lifting of the EU ban on snus smokeless tobacco. Dr Kimberly was replying to questions put to her by lawyers Edward Gatt and Kris Busietta during the compilation of evidence against Silvio Zammit, who stands accused of trading in influence and bribery. Mr Zammit was a canvasser of former EU Health Commissioner John Dalli, who had been responsible for the EU's tobacco regulations. In her fifth appearance in court, Dr Kimberly confirmed what she said in previous testimony - where she spoke on meetings with Mr Zammit, Dr Gatt referred to notes which she had given Mr Zammit with questions to ask Commissioner Dalli. In these notes she had said that Swedish Match had a turnover of €500 million. Dr Gatt said Dr Kimberly had made this reference because she had later intended to askfor €50m, a figure she later increase to €60m. But in her reply, Dr Kimberly said this was not true. Asked whether she had intended opening an office in Brussels, she said she had never intended to and did not need to as she had a well paying job...