Labour’s deputy leader for party affairs Toni Abela came under fire yesterday as a secret recording emerged in which he talks about telling a Labourite policeman not to press charges on a case.

Dr Abela insisted he had done nothing wrong

The audio clip surfaced on You Tube days after Dr Abela denied influencing police to delay action over a fight which, he insisted, was a separate incident from that mentioned in the recording.

In the excerpt Dr Abela is heard saying: “Why do you think I went to the police station, found someone who is a Labourite, and told him not to proceed for now...”

Addressing an animated press conference, Dr Abela insisted he had done nothing wrong and resisted calls for his resignation.

He also accused the Nationalist Party of not taking action over one of its clubs that was involved in a “prostitution racket”.

This is the second illicit recording in days that led the PN to call for resignations.

The first, last week, involved General Workers’ Union general secretary Tony Zarb.

As Dr Abela’s recording became public, Nationalist whip David Agius issued a statement to say he knew about it and had reported it to the Police Commissioner in October 2010.

Labour leader Joseph Muscat yesterday said the Police Commissioner did not take the allegation seriously and had not called Dr Abela for a statement.

PN deputy leader Simon Busuttil said the recording made Dr Abela’s position untenable and was a “test” for Dr Muscat.