MARTIN MCGUINNESS was last night forced to deny making veiled threats against the McCartney family after stating that they needed “to be very careful” about running against Sinn Fein at the election.

Mr McGuinness, named recently as a member of the IRA’s ruling army council and its chief negotiator, said that the family should avoid involving themselves in party politics.

“To step over that line, which is a very important line, into the world of party political politics, can do a huge disservice to their campaign,” Mr McGuinness told BBC Radio Ulster. “In fact, it can dismay and disillusion an awful lot of people, tens of thousands of people who support them in their just demands.”

Later on Channel 4 News, Mr McGuinness, the MP for Mid Ulster, was asked: “When one hears the phrase ‘the McCartneys have to be very careful’, it has a rather intimidatory feel about it, doesn’t it?” He said: “No, not all. It is important for the success of the McCartney campaign that they don’t stray into the field of party politics.”

Mr McGuinness was speaking as the five sisters and Bridgeen Hagans, the fiancée of Robert McCartney — the Catholic man murdered by a mob of men outside a city centre pub — flew to meet President Bush for a St Patrick’s Day celebration at the White House.

One of the McCartney sisters is threatening to challenge Sinn Fein at the polls but Mr McGuinness said that they could risk popular support. The family were unavailable for comment last night.

David Lidington, the Shadow Northern Ireland Secretary, said last night that the episode was further evidence of Sinn Fein’s unsuitability for government. Mr Lidington said: “It seems that Sinn Fein and the IRA know no language other than that of threats and intimidation. How can these people expect democratic parties to trust them?”

Earlier last night, Sinn Fein disclosed that a second party election candidate, Deirdre Hargey, was in Magennis’s pub when Mr McCartney was first attacked, and was still there when the police arrived. But she denied seeing the brawl that led to the knife attack, which left Mr McCartney, 33, dying on the street outside. Ms Hargey, 23, a community development worker, is due to stand in May’s local government elections. She said: “I did not witness the fracas in the bar, or the incident outside the bar.”

Cora Groogan is the other Sinn Fein candidate who confirmed this weekend that she was also in the bar.

Sean Hayes, a former south Belfast councillor, is also understood to have given a statement to his solicitor about being there. All three have made statements that were sent to the office of Nuala O’Loan, the Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland. She will forward them to investigating officers. The involvement of two of the party’s new generation of political representatives will cause a beleaguered and isolated Mr Adams much embarrassment in Washington and New York later this week.

Meanwhile, it emerged that one of the chief suspects in the McCartney murder inquiry is to be questioned by detectives. A lawyer for the man, one of three expelled by the IRA over the killing, contacted police yesterday. It is believed that investigating officers plan to interview him at a later date.

So far detectives have questioned 11 people over the stabbing, including another senior Provisional who was “dismissed” from the organisation because of his suspected involvement.

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