HOPES for an early breakthrough in talks between the Tanaiste and the Ulster Unionists have diminished after the deputy leader of the party, Mr John Taylor, called Mr Spring "the most detested politician in Northern Ireland".
Mr Spring's role in the internal affairs of Northern Ireland is "nil", he said.
In a strong attack on the Tanaiste, Mr Taylor told The Irish Times yesterday that Mr Spring "has lost the lovely image of a rugby player and is seen as a mouthpiece for Sinn Fein".
He had severely offended many people right across Northern Ireland recently by his "quite extraordinary" reaction to election proposals.
The Ulster Unionist party had no problem talking to the Tanaiste as foreign minister from a neighbouring country.
But, he added, "it is time we put it bluntly to Mr Spring we will not be talking to him at any stage about the internal affairs of Northern Ireland.
"He has got to respect that. The sooner he recognises the minimal role he has to play, the better. He had better reappraise his own position.
"His involvement in the internal affairs of Northern Ireland is nil ... We are in no mood to be pushed around by anybody like Dick Spring," Mr Taylor added.
Saying that he found the "Tanaiste's contribution on the election issue "very offensive", he said neither the Taoiseach, Mr Bruton, nor the leader of Democratic Left, Mr De Rossa, aroused annoyance among unionists.
"We don't find them saying things that are nasty. They are not the yes men of Sinn Fein. In the last few weeks, I have seen no difference between Dick Spring and Gerry Adams," he added.
Asked about the Ulster Unionists' response to the Government's wary attitude to elections as a precursor to all party talks, Mr Taylor said "The matter of elections will be one between the people of Northern Ireland and London."
He could not see why the Government should be upset about such a proposal. But if all party talks did begin, they would only discuss enhancing relationships between two distinct and independent countries.
Meanwhile, only time and logistics are preventing the Ulster Unionist leader, Mr David Trimble, and Mr Spring from having face to face discussions, according to Mr Taylor.
The two men spoke by telephone last Thursday but arrangements to communicate again on Saturday did not come to fruition after efforts by the Tanaiste to reach Mr Trimble failed.
Mr Taylor said unionist anger at Mr Spring had nothing to do with the fact that the men had not spoken on Saturday night, as planned.
They could meet in London this week before both men leave for the United States, he said.
In the meantime, senior Sinn Fein figures denied speculation by US Senator George Mitchell of a possible split within the IRA if all party talks do not begin soon.
Mr Mitchell, who chaired the international body on decommissioning, said it was important to draw Sinn Fein further into the democratic process by starting all party talks as quickly as possible.
Speaking on BBC's Breakfast with Frost yesterday, he said there was a danger that dissension in the IRA could lead to breakaway elements returning to violence.
"I think there is a danger of a fracture within that organisation. It seems clear that not all on the republican side favour the cease fire and the potential for some elements to take direct and violent action does remain," he added.
But Sinn Fein ardchomhairle member, Mr Martin McGuinness, was surprised by Mr Mitchell's comments and insisted the IRA was a "disciplined and cohesive organisation".
He did not believe there would be any split within the IRA. Party vice president Mr Pat Doherty said "there is not a chance" of a schism among republicans.
As relations between the Ulster Unionists and the Tanaiste worsened, Mr Spring was preparing for Wednesday's Anglo Irish Inter Governmental Conference meeting in Dublin with Northern Secretary Sir Patrick Mayhew.
The two sides will renew efforts to revive the twin track approach following the Mitchell report.
But sources in Dublin expect no breakthrough this week as the British government adheres firmly to its original election proposal.
Senior sources last night repeated that the Government was firm in its belief that elections before talks were "not good" as they, would serve to polarise the communities.