Prime Minister Joseph Muscat laughed off suggestions that Education Minister should have spoken differently on Sunday, saying that after all "we are a European country".

Mr Bartolo yesterday warned his listeners at Birkirkara that what he was about to say was "for adults only", and then went on to describe the Opposition as a party that is trying to become a virgin again.

In America, he said, women can spend €24 euros on a 30-minute surgery to restore their hymen and let her new partner believe that she has never been with a man.

This is what the Nationalist Party is doing, he said. After 25 years running a bordello, they are now undergoing a hymen-restoration surgery to become a virgin again, he said.

When asked by journalists if he feels a senior minister such as Mr Bartolo should have spoken about a party that was committing autogoals, Dr Muscat replied: "Do you think anybody of us wanted this?", referring to the shooting incident involving one of the drivers of Minister Emmanuel Mallia.

Questioned by journalists whether he has faith in the Commissioner of Police, Dr Muscat said that "we will await the inquiry report's conclusions first".