MZPN and FOIPN (Forum Opportunitijaet Indaqs Partit Nazzjonalista) said today they were four-square with Opposition leader Simon Busuttil in his push to bring about gay marriage.

"We note that this position is consistent with calls from the PN leader 12 months ago, and is a position which we back out of a true sense of responsibility and belief," the groups were quoted as saying in a PN statement.

Civil Liberties Minister Helena Dalli said yesterday that gay marriage could soon be introduced in Malta as a Marriage Equality Bill is in the process of being drafted. The Civil Partnership law already gives partners the same rights as married couples.

The MZPN and FOIPN said their support was one built on a genuine belief that same-sex marriage is a civil right for all, and is not a belief borne out of political convenience.

"Panama-Papers-embroiled Prime Minister Joseph Muscat has voiced his ‘support’ for the sensitive issue of same sex marriage just twice in the past year, the first time when the Panama Papers issue broke out in the local scene, and once more yesterday when the Pana Committee investigating his close friends and allies confirmed that suspicions of money-laundering existed in his team," the observed.