SINN Fein President Gerry Adams has spoken out against what he described as “bigotry” that he believes exists in some sections of unionism, saying “the point is to break these ba***rds”.

Mr. Adams was speaking at a public meeting organised by his party in Enniskillen tonight.

He was asked by a member of the audience about Sinn Fein’s relationship with the Democratic Unionist Party in light of recent events, including the controversial comments made by Gregory Campbell about the party’s use of the Irish language.

Speaking to the audience, Mr. Adams, a Louth TD, said that when he returns to visit Belfast some nationalists and republicans would ask him to explain the point of working with the party.

“It was universal people saying ‘what’s the point?’, ‘what’s the point?’. They weren't blaming Sinn Fein — in fact they were making the point that Sinn Fein were doing their best.

“But what’s the point? The point is to actually break these ba***rds - that’s the point. And what’s going to break them is equality. That’s what’s going to break them - equality. Who could be afraid of equality? Who could be afraid of treating somebody the way you want to be treated. That’s what we need to keep the focus on - that’s the trojan horse of the entire republican strategy.” Listen to the exclusive audio here. Note: it contains strong language.