The leader of the Democratic Unionist Party, Arlene Foster, has warned Sinn Féin that it must choose between making a deal with them or have direct rule imposed from Westminster.

Speaking at the party's annual conference yesterday she said "time is short".

She also spoke of the DUP's influence in Westminster and the party's commitment to Brexit.

DUP MPs are propping up the Conservative government as part of a confidence-and-supply deal.

On the failure of talks between the DUP and Sinn Féin, Foster said that "some progress was made but that can only be built upon if all sides are genuinely serious about obtaining a deal that is balanced".

The DUP-Sinn Féin power-sharing government fell apart in January following a row over a green energy scandal, which is now the subject of a public inquiry.

A series of talks have failed to find agreement over issues including the Irish language act and same-sex marriage.

"I said back in the summer that this party was prepared to legislate for the Irish language in the context of legislating for the plurality of cultures that exist in Northern Ireland," Foster told the conference in Belfast, adding that Sinn Fein needed to "respect our British culture". Adding, "For too long they have shown nothing but disdain and disrespect for the national flag, the Royal Family, the Armed Forces, British symbols, the constitutional reality and the very name of this country."