An MLA has issued an apology after retweeting a “totally unfounded” allegation regarding Attorney General John Larkin QC’s views on women.

Paula Bradshaw, Alliance MLA for South Belfast, tweeted: “On 14th September a tweet was published in my name which wrongly made reference to the Attorney General, John Larkin QC.”

A subsequent tweet added: “I fully accept the tweeted allegation regarding Mr Larkin’s views on women was totally unfounded. I unreservedly apologise to Mr Larkin.”

BBC News reports that Ms Bradshaw was threatened with legal action after the original tweet was posted last month.

Legal expert Joshua Rozenberg told BBC News: “Politics are increasingly played out on social media, but you certainly can’t rely on parliamentary privilege on Twitter.

“Politicians and the public in general need to be careful not to overreact and to think about the impact of social media.

“In this case, it’s right that the people who would have seen the post - her followers - is the same audience for the apology.

“Unfortunately for the tweeter, the public will often take more interest in the apology than the original tweet.”