SINN Fein's Stormont leader Michelle O'Neill has said she has spoken to Michelle Gildernew after the former agriculture minister told a meeting of her party that they will “put manners on Arlene Foster.”

Ms. Gildernew was heard making the comments by a member of The Impartial Reporter editorial team during Sinn Fein's election campaign in Enniskillen earlier this week.

As first tweeted by this newspaper, the Sinn Fein election candidate told the public meeting that Ms. O'Neill would "take no shite" and was "no dozer.”

Asked on BBC's The View about the remarks by the former Fermanagh-south Tyrone MP, Ms. O'Neill said: “No, I think that kind of language isn't appropriate... I think it's too far... because I am somebody who is interested in integrity and respect.”

“I have spoken to Michelle. That's not helpful language, it's not language I would use,” she said.

Ms. O'Neill criticised what she said was the DUP's “contempt, arrogance and disrespect.”

“I do not want that from anyone on my team, that's not the way we should conduct ourselves. If you are in public life you have a job to be a leader. To be a leader means putting yourself in uncomfortable positions. If you don't like something step up and try and fix it,” she said.

DUP MP Sammy Wilson said there is “a glaring contradiction between Sinn Fein’s public statements and what they tell party supporters when they believe comments will not be reported.”

“The public statements on equality are explained to the party faithful as being a strategy to 'break' unionists. The calls for respect in public are replaced with promises in private to 'put manners' on Arlene Foster. This seems to be the latest ‘twin track’ approach from Sinn Fein.
“It has been clear for some time that this election was called by Sinn Fein to weaken unionism and dictate who leads the DUP. Unable to cope with a government where they are required to bring forward budget proposals, unable to cope with strong unionist leadership and unable to cope with the will of the people in a UK referendum, Sinn Fein have reverted to causing a political crisis,” he said.