Former PN MP David Thake has withdrawn a libel suit he had filed against the Labour media station over a story on unpaid VAT.

One News reported that Thake has reached an agreement with the tax department to repay the €270,000 bill owed by his company Vanilla Telecoms.

The Labour Party media had reported that Thake had only sought the repayment agreement after he was caught. Thake had resigned from Parliament but insisted that his position was a normal one and that he personally owed nothing to the tax authorities.

The former MP had sued former editor Edward Montebello and journalist Samuel Lucas for libel.

One News said Thake withdrew the suit after stating that he is no longer in public life and now has no interest in following proceedings related to “the life he left behind.”

The Labour newsroom said it was prepared to continue with the case and said it had planned to call in several witnesses, including the Tax Commissioner, VAT Department representatives, PN officials and media editors.