The leader of the Progressive Unionist Party has insisted that he will never again meet with the commission monitoring paramilitary activity in Northern Ireland.

David Ervine's announcement follows the publication of a report by the Independent Monitoring Commission, highlighting a reported link between the party and two paramilitary organisations - the Ulster Volunteer Force and the Red Hand Commando.

Financial penalties have been imposed on the PUP as a result of the findings.

Speaking on Monday, the party leader insisted that important information had been missed out of the report, including a decision by the UVF to disarm and disband a unit responsible for the murder of John Allen in Ballyclare in November, and the party's appeal to the government to deal with criminals in the loyalist community.

"If the IMC report was meant to give a clear and precise understanding of the state of paramilitarist attitudes and violence within Northern Ireland, then there was a hell of a lot left out," he said.

"I met up with a group of people who were deeply open, very upfront and tried to consult in a way that was ensuring a more full picture of the circumstances relating to UVF and Red Hand Commando violence.

"Not one word of any of that interaction between the IMC appears."

Ervine will meet with Northern Ireland secretary Paul Murphy on Tuesday to discuss the report's findings.

"The Progressive Unionist Party leadership as a whole does not determine these activities and may not be in a position to ensure prevention of them," he added.

"But it can exert appreciable influence."