The 10-year-old Nationalist proposal for a law on civil partnerships, including gay relationships, should be implemented, Labour Leader Joseph Muscat said yesterday.
The time had come to implement a promise that would protect cohabiting couples, he insisted during a political activity in Rabat.
The state did not represent the Catholic Church and had to safeguard the rights of citizens whether they were Catholic or not, and neither should they enter into people's private lives, he maintained.
He said the three Labour MEPs always voted in favour of gays at the European Parliament while the Nationalist candidates abstained.
Television presenter John Bundy, who interviewed Dr Muscat, reminded him that he was at the forefront of the anti-EU campaign before the referendum in 2004.
"I believe in the people and followed their wishes," Dr Muscat replied. Speaking about divorce, Dr Muscat said he had come in for some fierce criticism because he had spoken out on the subject.
Before he was elected Labour leader, Dr Muscat had said he would personally present a law on divorce for discussion in Parliament but this did not happen because the Labour Party lost the general election.
He said he would give Labour MPs a free vote on the matter.
When asked by Mr Bundy if he would be prepared to put the issue to the test through a referendum, Dr Muscat replied that he was ready to look into it and "to give the Maltese a free vote."
Mr Bundy, who contested the 1996 election on the PN ticket, is openly supporting Labour MEP candidate Kirill Micallef Stafrace.
Turning to abortion, Dr Muscat emphasised that he would never accept the termination of any human life. "I never cried as hard as I did when we lost our son through a miscarriage - I cried for that foetus," he said.
Referring to illegal immigrants who were exploited by the construction industry, Dr Muscat said the legal system allowed the Maltese owners to get away with it.
"The Marsa roundabout where immigrants wait to be picked up for a job is a shame," he said.
The government turned a blind eye to these illegalities but he would never accept them.