"Michelle O'Neill should withdraw 'no alternative' comments or step back from her political role," the UUP MLA for Fermanagh South Tyrone has said following controversial comments made by Sinn Féin's Vice-President Michelle O'Neill in a radio interview.

Mr. Elliot was responding to a BBC interview in which she stated there was "no alternative" to IRA actions during The Troubles.

In a statement, Mr. Elliott said: "I’ve considered the comments of Michelle O’Neill where she said there was ‘no alternative’ to the terrorist murder campaign in Northern Ireland.

"At a time when we hear young people from the Nationalist community chanting pro-IRA slogans at events, and even when passing band parades, [such words are] extremely dangerous actions from the now senior Sinn Fein figure."

Speaking about the impact of such comments on victims of The Troubles and the community at large, Mr. Elliott said: "When you speak with anyone who has been the subject of a terrorist murder campaign, some of those may have been seriously injured or had a close relative or friend murdered, you understand the unnecessary brutality and waste of innocent life that such a campaign brought about.

"For such comments – by what is essentially the First Minister in waiting of Northern Ireland – how can the community have confidence in someone who holds such views, which defends that brutal murderous campaign, and potentially incites the younger generation into unsavoury actions, or even believe that it is right to be involved in such murder and destruction?"

Calling for her comments to be retracted or for Ms. O'Neill to step down, Mr. Elliott said: "In order for society to have confidence in the government leaders, such comments and actions as those of Ms. O’Neill cannot and should not be accommodated.

"Unless there is a genuine retraction of those comments, Ms. O’Neill should step back from her senior political role in order to provide assurance to the innocent victims of terrorism that the [IRA's] terrorist campaign of murder and destruction in Northern Ireland was wrong and cannot be justified."

The Impartial Reporter contacted two local Sinn Féin representatives regarding the comments from Ms. O'Neill and Mr. Elliott's subsequent comments. Neither local representative had responded by the time of going to press.

However, a statement sent from the Sinn Féin press office read: "All parties have acknowledged the key role the Good Friday Agreement played in bringing an end to the conflict and building the peace ... We all have a responsibility to work together to deliver for all our people, to promote reconciliation and ensure that conflict is a thing of the past.

“That’s why the political parties and the two governments agreed a way forward at Stormont House to deal with the legacy of the past and ensure victims and families have access to truth and justice. There is an onus on the British government to implement that agreement.”