The European Union's new justice chief has been criticised by MEPs after he said homosexuality was a sin.
Mr Rocco Buttiglione, the Italian commissioner-designate for justice, freedom and security, defended his views and promised to make protecting fundamental rights a top priority during his five-year term in the EU executive arm which takes office on November 1.
Mr Buttiglione incensed several members of the EU legislature as he stood firm on his belief - as a staunch Roman Catholic and close friend of Pope John Paul II - that homosexuality is a sin, saying his moral beliefs had no influence on his politics.
"Many things may be considered immoral which should not be prohibited . . . I may think that homosexuality is a sin, this has no effect on politics unless I say that homosexuality is a crime," Mr Buttiglione said.
He vowed to defend the EU's first constitution and its charter on human rights, which says people should not be discriminated against for their sexuality, but said it was unrealistic to think that people always agreed on moral matters.
He also pledged to fight terrorism and boost security without undermining privacy rights and to remain independent from the Italian government in which he has served for the past three years as European affairs minister.
But many EU lawmakers were not impressed with Mr Buttiglione's testimony in the European Parliament.
"I have considerable reservations about him," Baroness Sarah Ludford, a leading Liberal member of the EU legislature, said. "We want a commissioner who is passionate and enthusiastic about this subject."
She also criticised Mr Buttiglione for reiterating support for German-Italian plans to set up reception centres for migrants outside the bloc's borders.
But Mr Buttiglione said Europe was facing a "humanitarian emergency" and the EU could not turn its back on the problem of illegal migrants, many of whom die trying to enter the bloc.
Italy is a key player in the immigration debate as thousands of migrants risk their lives trying to reach the country's shores from the Balkans, Turkey and North Africa.