The singer ' who revealed he is gay earlier this year ' has been with his current partner for three years and though they could tie the knot overseas, he has ruled it out until it is permissible in his native country.

He said: ' am in a relationship right now but we aren't talking about marriage yet. We've been together for three years but it's still a nurturing process. That's where my relationship is at.

'Unfortunately, we don't have the option of marriage in our country. We could go to Britain or Spain or Argentina and do something beautifully symbolic, but that's not what I want.

' want to have the rights of anybody else in my home country. I don't want to be a second-class citizen. I'd want to do it on the island where I was born and where I will die.'

Ricky has two-year-old twins Matteo and Valentino and is hopeful to teach them to accept all kinds of relationships as they grow older.

He added in an interview with Attitude magazine: 'We have to let people understand that our relationships are built on love and respect and not every family is the same. These are things I will tell my kids.

'They will ask where their mom is, and I will say that not every family consists of a mom and a dad. Some families consist of two moms or two dads or one dad or a mom and that's the beauty of modern families.'