Justice Minister Sotiris Hatzigakis stressed that a proposed cohabitation law, granting heterosexual couples living together the same rights as those who are married, would not be extended to gay couples.

“This (bill) is as far as we need to go to fulfill the demands and needs of Greek society – if new behavior develops in the future, we will examine the issue again,” Hatzigakis told Parliament.

The minister was reacting to appeals for the reforms to apply to gays too, submitted in Parliament by the Coalition of the Radical Left (SYRIZA), the National Committee for Human Rights and another group representing lawyers from around the country.