Berlusconi faces down latest scandal: 'At least I'm not gay'

The Italian Prime Minister, Silvio Berlusconi, defended the furor caused by the presence of a young girl at a number of his private functions by attacking the press and stating that "it is better to be passionate about pretty women than gay".

Last week, after this latest scandal regarding an underage girl called Ruby came to light, Berlusconi declared himself "proud" of his style of life and openly proclaimed his love for women.

"I have always been like this. Sometimes I happen to look at a pretty girl''s face, but it is better to be passionate about pretty girls than to be gay," he stressed.

On Saturday, opposition lawmakers demanded that the Italian PrimeMinister resign after a paper published what it claimed were details ofhim asking police to free a 17-year-old Moroccan girl, known as Ruby,who had been arrested for theft.

The saga of the girl, a dancerwho goes by the stage name "Ruby" and her ties to the 74-year-oldcenter-right prime minister have exploded into the latest scandal overBerlusconi''s private life. He claimed he intervened on behalf of the girl, who ceased to be a minor on Monday, out of "goodness".

Newspapers have been awash with details of parties allegedly attended by Ruby at the media tycoon''s residence.

She has been quoted calling them "bunga-bunga" parties - an apparent reference to a lewd joke that is taken to refer to some form of sexual activity - and the term has already taken on a life of its own in popular gossip.