The European Commission is expected to re-launch a new bid to revise working time rules after five-year long talks to amend the directive ended in failure last April.

Commission sources said the EU Executive was planning to start a new debate with European trade unions and employers in the coming weeks to find a solution.

"According to EU rules, before we launch a formal proposal there need to be negotiations between the employers and trade unions to try and iron out a preliminary agreement. We are currently at this stage and if an agreement is reached we would just need to put it forward to member states and the European Parliament," a Commission official said.

"However, if the discussions between the social parties fail, we will then make our own proposal."

Back in 2004, the Commission had proposed to restrict overtime across the EU to a maximum of eight hours a week. Following protracted wrangling, a number of countries, among them Malta, were allowed to opt out of these provisions to safeguard jobs.

The compromise, however, was opposed by MEPs, particularly the Socialist group. The stalemate carried on until last April when the Commission announced it would be withdrawing the proposals.

Speaking to the press earlier this week, Employment Commissioner Vladimir Spidla said Brussels was now planning a broader reform, adding that the Commission was determined to avoid a repetition of the previous deadlock.

"I believe we have to look at this directive from a wider perspective. The world of work has changed since the adoption of the (working time) directive more than 15 years ago," Mr Spidla said.

Malta has already indicated that its position has not changed and that any new directive will have to include the right of member states to opt out and allow its workers flexibility on the amount of overtime they choose to work.

The issue was also raised by Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi last week in Madrid during discussions with his counterpart, Josè Luis Zapatero, who will be assuming the EU's rotating Presidency in January. Dr Gonzi informed him that Malta would insist on retaining flexibility.

Malta is among 15 EU member states that make use of the opt-out and argues that it needs a flexible working environment, particularly in the tourism and health sectors. The government's position is supported by both trade unions and employers.

If launched this year, the Commission's new proposal is expected to take at least another two years of debate before an agreement becomes possible.