Opposition leader Marc Bean has challenged Premier Craig Cannonier to release the recording of a conversation he had with Government backbencher Nandi Outerbridge.

Speaking to The Royal Gazette this afternoon, Mr Bean denied claims by Mr Cannonier that the contents of the tape were so “atrocious” that they could damage the country and insisted that he had nothing to hide.

But he did admit that, during the meeting, he attempted to persuade Ms Outerbridge to cross the floor and join the ranks of the Progressive Labour Party.

The conversation took place in Mr Bean’s offices last July. Mrs Outerbridge was the subject of a police investigation at the time and her political future was being questioned. She is understood to have recorded the meeting on her cell phone and later handed over the recording to senior party members.

In the House of Assembly on Friday, Mr Bean said he had contacted the MP to reassure her that he would not try to take political advantage of her personal situation by referring to the police investigation during House of Assembly debates.

The Premier countered that the Opposition leader attempted to persuade Ms Davis to stand down from her marginal seat and join the PLP. He added that, although Government had considered making the recording public, some of the contents were so “bad” and “atrocious”, it was decided in the best interests of the country to keep the recording under wraps.

Referring to Mrs Outerbridge by her maiden name of Davis, Mr Bean this afternoon said: “What possibly could I have said to Nandi Davis in the members’ lounge that was possibly damaging to the country?

“I could give you 100 guesses and you wouldn’t get one right because there was nothing.

“I gave her street talk, man to woman, and I assured her that I would not attack her on principle.

“We’re all human beings and Nandi Davis was going through something no woman, regardless of her age, should be going through. I talked to her like a big brother, younger sister, and explained how she could navigate through this.

“So when they are talking about allegations, I have got nothing to hide. You can’t bring controversy on Marc Bean. One thing about my people is that they trust me and I don’t believe that whatever I said was damaging to the country.”

When asked if he tried to persuade Mrs Outerbridge to resign, he said: “I’m a politician — why wouldn’t I give her some advice? Her whole family is PLP and she was being led astray.”

And when asked if he attempted to blackmail Mrs Outerbridge by suggesting that any criminal charges would be dropped if she resigned or switched political parties, Mr Bean replied: “Do you think anyone in the PLP has the power to make things go away? You must be referring to the other political party. Yes, I can deny it categorically — if you haven’t heard the tape already, play it.”

He maintained that he was correct to say that Mrs Outerbridge was “wired” for their conversation — even though this newspaper understands the conversation was recorded on her cellphone, albeit without Mr Bean’s knowledge.

And he also claimed that other “secret” tapes existed because Government MPs had recorded each other’s conversations.

“In the streets of Bermuda, that is considered to be wired,” he said.

“She understood that and she understood that is a no-no. In our community, you can never do nothing like that.

“But if you want to talk about tapes, they have got tapes of each other. Over the last year they have been secretly recording each other, so this isn’t the only tape out there. Go and tell Craig Cannonier if he has found out about the tape concerning the Corporation of Hamilton and the waterfront leases.”

And he claimed that he first became aware of the recording last August — and that Ms Davis had recently approached him and apologised for the incident.

“I have known about the tape since August — but go and ask Nandi Davis if she came to me two months ago and was fully apologetic. She said that they used her,” he said.

Mr Bean also questioned why no charges were ever brought again Mrs Outerbridge as a result of the police investigation into a complaint of criminal damage.

“Why did the case get dropped? You have to ask some questions.”

Later this afternoon, a PLP spokesman once again questioned why the One Bermuda Alliance had failed to release a tape which it claimed could damage its political opponents.

And he also condemned today’s Royal Gazette headline — Bean tape ‘so atrocious’ it could damage country — claiming it was “sensational”.

“We find it curious that the OBA refuse to release the tape, yet allege that the tape contains something untoward,” the spokesman said.

“This is typical of the dishonest behaviour we have come to expect from the OBA. For the good of the country, we demand that they release the full, unedited version of the recording of this private conversation so that the public can judge for themselves.

“We are supremely concerned about the conduct of Premier Craig Cannonier, Minister Shawn Crockwell, AG Mark Pettingill and MP Nandi Outerbridge.

“Today’s headline in The Royal Gazette highlights a symptom of selective journalism that has been prevalent in Bermuda media for far too long,” the spokesman said.

“Sensational headlines to sell papers while diluting the truth. We call upon the editor of The Royal Gazette to abandon this irresponsible practice, engage in responsible journalism and work to overcome their obvious bias.”