Lewis Hamilton was in convincing form as he headed Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg in second practice at the Malaysian Grand Prix.

The world champion was 0.223 seconds quicker than Rosberg, with Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel 0.661secs off in third ahead of team-mate Kimi Raikkonen.
Red Bull's Max Verstappen was fifth fastest ahead of Force India's Sergio Perez and McLaren's Fernando Alonso.
It was a welcome return to form for Hamilton after a poor last race.
Hamilton finished third in Singapore two weeks ago as Rosberg won, losing the championship lead for the first time since taking it in July and dropping eight points behind Rosberg with six races to go heading into this weekend on the demanding Sepang track.
After an inconclusive first practice session that was hard to read, the Briton was on impressive form in second practice.
As well as being fastest on the qualifying simulation runs on the softest tyre, Hamilton also set the pace throughout the first part of the session, by 0.399secs despite using the hard tyre while Rosberg was on the medium.
Behind the Mercedes, Ferrari seemed to have an edge on Red Bull as the two teams continue their battle to end the season second in the championship - Vettel was 0.432secs quicker than Verstappen.
Alonso's position in seventh place was a surprise fillip for McLaren.
The Spaniard was using an upgraded Honda power-unit, with a lighter block and redesigned exhaust, aimed at improving the car's qualifying performance.
The development is aimed at Honda's home race in Japan next weekend but has been introduced in Malaysia because taking it means a 30-place grid penalty for Alonso for using too many engine parts.
The plan at this stage is to revert to an older-spec engine for the rest of this weekend.
Team-mate Jenson Button, who will not have the new engine until the US Grand Prix in two races time at the earliest because Honda does not want grid penalties at Suzuka, was 10th fastest after being held up on his fastest lap by Renault's Kevin Magnussen.
Media playback is not supported on this device
Magnussen was playing catch-up after losing the entire first session following a fire in the pits as a result of a problem with a fuel breather pipe.
The Dane ended up 19th fastest, seven places and 0.7secs slower than team-mate Jolyon Palmer.
Malaysian Grand Prix second practice results
Malaysian Grand Prix coverage details


Fulham boss Slavisa Jokanovic is sure striker Chris Martin will remain for the rest of the season despite parent club Derby wanting to recall him.

Martin, 28, has scored eight goals in 18 Championship games since joining the Whites on loan in September, in a deal which has no release clause.
"The situation with Chris Martin is over," Jokanovic told BBC Radio London.
"I bought a flat in Putney 15 years ago and then sold it. I can't ask for it back now, because it is impossible."
The Serb added: "This country is very famous for contracts. Everything is on paper and really clear."
Martin was allowed to leave Pride Park to join Fulham, with a view to a permanent deal, by former Rams boss Nigel Pearson.
Steve McClaren was reappointed by Derby in October and is keen to bring the Scotland international, who scored 43 goals in less than two seasons during McClaren's first spell in charge, back to the East Midlands.
"Fulham, quite rightly, want to keep Chris as he is a good player. We want him back, but it is out of my hands
Martin made himself unavailable for Fulham's trip to Reading on 30 December - a match that was subsequently abandoned - and then missed the defeat by Brighton on 2 January and the FA Cup victory against Cardiff on 8 January.
Jokanovic made clear he would keep Martin in west London, stating Fulham were "not a train station".
He returned to the starting line-up against Barnsley on Saturday, scoring one goal from the penalty spot and setting up the other in a 2-0 home win over the Tykes.
"Chris is a very important part of my squad," Jokanovic, 48, added.
"Our supporters know my opinion about him. He is focused to help us and he is working well."
McClaren added to his attacking options this month with the signing of David Nugent from Middlesbrough, but the former England manager is keen to strengthen his squad as County, like Fulham, target a place in the play-offs.
"We would like him back but it is not possible because there is no release clause in January," McClaren told BBC Radio Derby.
"Fulham, quite rightly, want to keep him as he is a damn good player and he's proven it for Fulham.
"There are still two weeks to go but we'll have to soldier on and Chris has to play for Fulham. There is still time and we still want him back, but it is out of my hands."


The new musical Groundhog Day has opened in London to a string of five-star reviews.

One critic hailed it as "an instant classic" while another called it "a cast-iron triumph".
The show, featuring songs by Tim Minchin, has been adapted for the stage by Danny Rubin, who co-wrote the 1993 film starring Bill Murray.
It tells the story of a grumpy TV weatherman who gets stuck in a time loop.
In his five-star review for The Telegraph, Dominic Cavendish wrote: "A much-loved, ingeniously funny and clever Hollywood film has made a triumphant theatrical rebirth - in a show that looks, on first viewing, equal to, and perhaps better than, the movie."
He added that Groundhog Day was "as funny and as touching as you could wish, and it lands with the confidence of an instant classic".
Mark Shenton's five-star review for The Stage described the show as "infinitely playful yet darkly serious".
He praised Minchin's "evocative and exhilarating" score adding that there were "plenty of cheeky Minchin jokes throughout".
It was, Shenton concluded, an "exhilarating new musical about life lived with the repeat button, which is itself worth watching more than once".
In her five-star Whatsonstage.com review, Sarah Crompton called Groundhog Day "a cast-iron triumph, both joyful and profound, incredibly funny and seriously moving".  Minchin, she opined, "might just be a genius".
Also giving five stars, in a review for The Times, Ann Treneman said the musical was "so much fun that it should be illegal."
And Henry Hitchings, awarding five stars in the Evening Standard, said: "This adaptation has its own dizzying brand of joy, as well as elements of real darkness."
Michael Billington, who gave four stars in The Guardian, said: "While the show is high-grade fun, I enjoyed it more for its dazzling theatrical expertise than for its much thinner emotional content."
The Mail's Quentin Letts said the show "needs more work, more heart and, most of all, a leading man who can match the quirky appeal Bill Murray brought to the film".
Speaking after Tuesday's world premiere, Minchin said he hoped the musical would have a life beyond the Old Vic.
"The reason it's at the Old Vic and not a West End theatre is that we wanted to see if it was a piece of work of the scale that could go to the West End and Broadway," he told the BBC.
Director Matthew Warchus, who worked with Minchin on the award-winning Matilda, described Groundhog Day as an "unconventional musical".
"Sometimes people think when you turn a hit movie into a musical you are just trying to exploit it for financial gain, but from the moment we started, it was without cynicism because we believed in the worth of the story," he said.
He praised the cast and crew for their work on the "very complex" production.
"Each actor in the cast has an average of 20 costume changes - which has got to be some sort of record," he added.
Andy Karl, who plays weatherman Phil Connors, added: "The word of mouth has been great. I'm happy that people can enjoy it again - I'm hoping that we can do it across the pond, here and everywhere."
Groundhog Day is at the Old Vic until 17 September.
Follow us on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts, on Instagram, or email entertainment.news@bbc.co.uk.


Lessons should be learned from problems with a French reactor that is very similar to one planned in the UK, says Britain's nuclear safety regulator.

French regulators have been informed of "manufacturing anomalies" in components "particularly important for safety" at Flamanville 3 power plant, in Normandy.
The reactor is similar to one planned for Hinkley Point, in Somerset.
EDF Energy - involved in both projects - said a new series of tests was under way and it was working with regulators.
An investigation revealed potential weaknesses in the steel used to make a safety casing around the reactor at Flamanville, near Cherbourg.
Areva, which is building Flamanville 3 for EDF, says it is the first plant in the "new French reactor fleet", and it includes Areva's new EPR reactor.
The UK Office for Nuclear Regulation said it was aware of the French Nuclear Safety Authority's concerns about the reactor and would continue to liaise with French authorities.
"The UK currently have no EPR reactors but expects that learning from Flamanville 3 will be taken into account in the manufacture of components intended for the planned new reactor at Hinkley Point C," it said.
By Joe Lynam, BBC business correspondent
These safety issues in France could lead to even further delays in the construction and completion of the proposed Â£24.5bn Hinkley Point nuclear power plant.
It has already been delayed by months as the government negotiated a contract for EDF to supply electricity at a guaranteed price for 35 years.
The final decision on the project is expected in the coming months but is also delayed by Britain not having a fully functioning government - something which could be exacerbated if talks on forming a government drag on after the election.
These safety concerns in France are not expected to set the Hinkley Point project back too much but they may spook the Chinese companies set to invest in the project.
In a joint statement, Areva and EDF said new tests were under way on the "reactor vessel head and bottom".
It said this followed initial tests which had shown "greater than average carbon content" - something French regulators said caused "lower than expected mechanical toughness" in the steel.
EDF and Areva added: "Teams are working to perform the additional tests as soon as possible, following approval by the French Nuclear Safety Authority on the test conditions, and to provide the safety authority with all the necessary information to demonstrate the safety and quality of the corresponding equipment."
The components in question have not yet been fitted at Hinkley, but it would cost money and could delay the project if they had to be entirely re-made.


A former county cricketer took his own life in a fall from a bridge, a coroner has concluded.

Tom Allin, who was 28 and a former Warwickshire fast bowler, died months after suffering serious leg injuries in a car crash, the inquest heard.
His body was found below the A39 River Torridge Bridge in Bideford, Devon, on 4 January.
Devon and Cornwall Police later found three suicide notes at his home written to family and friends.
More on the inquest, plus more Devon and Cornwall news.
The inquest at North Devon Civic Centre was told passing motorists, including an off-duty nurse, alerted the emergency services and tried in vain to give first aid to Mr Allin.
His parents, Tony and Beverley Allin, said their son had been through "several tough months" leading up to his death, starting in early October when his brother was seriously ill.
The court heard that in late October Tom Allin was in a road accident near Clovelly, Devon, and had to be cut from his car.
He had surgery and was "recovering well physically" but by early December he told a nurse his mood was "up and down" and was advised to seek help.
A police investigation did not find any suspicious circumstances or any third party involvement in Mr Allin's death.
A post-mortem examination found that Mr Allin died from "devastating non-survivable injuries". No drugs or alcohol were found in his body.
Dr Elizabeth Earland, senior coroner for Exeter and Greater Devon, recorded a conclusion of suicide.
"On the evidence I am in no doubt that Tom was the architect of his own demise and he clearly intended the consequences of what he did and there is no evidence of a third party involvement," she said.


A benefit concert in memory of a cyclist killed on an Edinburgh road is to be held in an Edinburgh church.

Andrew McNicoll, 43, from Balerno, was taken to hospital after the crash on Lanark Road in January. He later died.
Police said he had been cycling on the north carriageway of the road at the time of the crash and hit a parked car.
The concert at Polwarth Parish Church is being held at 19:30 on Friday to raise money for his parent's campaign for safer roads.
Following the crash a man was detained by police in connection with the incident but later released without charge. Police said inquiries are ongoing.
At the time Mr McNicoll's father Ian said: "Our grief, as you can imagine, is immense.
"Andrew was a fit young man with a great future ahead of him with his partner Donna.
"We are extremely proud of our Andrew and his achievements, and are devastated to have lost him."
He added: "We are setting up a memorial fund in his name to help make cycling safer in Scotland."


People living on the east coast of America might be trying to clean up after the big snow storm but giant panda Tian Tian still can't get enough of the white stuff.

26 January 2016 Last updated at 11:15 GMT
Over the weekend more than a metre of snow fell in some parts causing lots of problems.
Giant panda Tian Tian lives at the Smithsonian National Zoo in Washington DC in America.
Take a look at him rolling around.


Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has said he regrets calling his US counterpart Barack Obama the "son of a whore".

His controversial comments have led to diplomatic consequences with the US president cancelling a scheduled meeting with Mr Duterte.
But the Philippine leader, who has insulted prominent figures before, is not the only one guilty of offending world leaders.
From a "sadistic nurse" to "the devil" himself, here are some of the more memorable comments made by or about those in positions of power.
The then Syrian defence minister General Mustafa Tlass, known for his colourful language, triggered a diplomatic row with the Palestinian Authority when he described its leader Yasser Arafat as the "son of 60,000 whores".
Gen Tlass, who launched the outspoken attack on Mr Arafat in a speech in 1999, said: "You should have told the White House that Jerusalem is the capital of the future Palestinian state but instead you stayed as quiet as a mouse and did not dare say a single word in favour of Palestine or Jerusalem."
His comments led to demonstrations in Gaza with thousands of Palestinians protesting at the personal attack on their leader.
In a dramatic speech to the UN in September 2006, the then president of Venezuela, Hugo Chavez, famously described his US counterpart George W Bush as the "devil".
"The Devil is right at home. The devil, the devil himself, is right in the house.
"And the devil came here yesterday. Yesterday the devil came here. Right here. And it smells of sulphur still today.
"Yesterday, ladies and gentlemen, from this rostrum, the president of the United States, the gentleman to whom I refer as the devil, came here, talking as if he owned the world. Truly. As the owner of the world."
On the same podium in 2009, Mr Chavez cautiously welcomed Mr Obama's new administration. Looking around, he said: "It doesn't smell of sulphur any more. No, it smells of something else. It smells of hope, and you have to have hope in your heart."
When a sentence begins with the words "I don't want to be rude", you should probably prepare to be offended.
Nigel Farage, leader of the UK Independence Party (UKIP) at the time of his speech to MEPs in the European parliament, launched into a personal attack on Herman Van Rompuy that lasted several minutes.
He said the president of the European Council had "the charisma of a damp rag".
He compared the former Belgian prime minister to a "low-grade bank clerk" and said he came from a "non-country".
The attack, which stunned the chamber, came as Mr Van Rompuy made his maiden appearance in parliament in Brussels.
The EU was plunged into a grave diplomatic crisis following former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's "Nazi guard" remarks to a German MEP, Martin Schulz.
MEPs threatened to break off relations with the EU's top decision-making body, the European Council (headed by Mr Berlusconi at the time), unless a formal apology was given.
"I know that in Italy there is a man producing a film on Nazi concentration camps," Mr Berlusconi said, adding: "I shall put you forward for the role of Kapo [guard chosen from among the prisoners] - you would be perfect."
As the controversy over his remark intensified, he responded: "I'll try to soften it and become boring, maybe even very boring, but I am not sure I will be able to do it."
Tony Abbott, then Australian prime minister, controversially threatened to "shirtfront" Russian leader Vladimir Putin ahead of the November G20 summit in Brisbane.
Mr Abbott's comment was made after the shooting down of flight MH17 over Ukraine, in which 38 Australians were among the 298 killed.
Russia was criticised for backing the rebel separatist fighters blamed for shooting down the Malaysia Airlines passenger plane.
The term "shirtfront", commonly associated with the rough and tumble of Australian football, means to target an opponent with a head-on charge aimed at bumping them to the ground.
The two appeared cordial when the meeting took place.
Hillary Clinton could be the next US president. And as leader of "the free world", she would be a useful person to have in your corner.
Not known for her sense of humour, it was unlikely that she would have been amused by this description from UK Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson.
Back in 2007 Mr Johnson said: "She's got dyed blonde hair and pouty lips, and a steely blue stare, like a sadistic nurse in a mental hospital."
In 2016 he said his outspoken comments had been "taken out of context".
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro pulled out a string of epithets for the head of the Organization of American States (OAS,) Luis Almagro.
He called him "rubbish", a "traitor" and told him: "Mr Almagro, you can take your Democratic Charter, put it into a thin tube, and shove it wherever it fits."
In a series of Twitter posts addressed directly to Mr Maduro, Mr Almagro also called him a "petty dictator".
After the remarks, the former Uruguayan President Jose Mujica said President Maduro was "mad as a goat".
The comments were made after Mr Almagro called an emergency meeting over Venezuela's "institutional crisis", a move that could have led to Venezuela's expulsion from the OAS.
He has blamed US President Barack Obama for everything from Brexit to the rise of so-called Islamic State (IS), but Donald Trump's request to see Mr Obama's full birth certificate triggered a long-running debate - and a string of conspiracy theories.
The colourful billionaire was convinced that Mr Obama was actually born in Kenya and offered the president $5m to reveal his college and passport records.
Later, at the annual White House correspondents' dinner, Mr Obama said: "As some of you heard, the state of Hawaii released my official long-form birth certificate.
"Hopefully this puts all doubts to rest, but just in caseâ€¦ tonight for the first time I am prepared to go one step further, I am releasing my official birth video."
The screen in the conference hall then cut to a clip from the Disney film The Lion King. "Oh well," Mr Obama added, "back to square one".
The Uruguayan president was caught on microphone at the start of a news conference apparently referring to his Argentinean counterpart as an "old hag".
President Jose Mujica, allegedly referring to Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner and her late husband, was overheard in a recording in 2013 saying: "This old hag is even worse than the cross-eyed man."
A Uruguayan newspaper posted audio of his comments on its website, which led to official protests in Argentina.
President Mujica later denied that he had been talking about the Kirchners. To this day he has failed to explain whom he was referring to.
Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe hit out at South Africa's former Archbishop Desmond Tutu, calling him an "angry, evil and embittered little bishop".
The two are not known to be the closest of friends with Archbishop Tutu earlier saying that Mr Mugabe resembled a caricature of an African dictator.
Mr Mugabe's comments were made in an interview with Sky News.
Archbishop Tutu, who won the Nobel peace prize for his efforts as one of the leading figures in the fight against apartheid in South Africa, did not comment on Mr Mugabe's verbal attack.


The Big Burns Supper festival has announced the end of one Dumfries town centre venue while unveiling a new site on the Crichton estate.

Organisers said they had "outgrown" the Spiegeltent, which has been located next to Loreburn Hall in recent years.
For the first time, they will be staging events at the Easterbrook Hall for the 2017 edition in January.
A free shuttle bus to the site will run at peak times and other venues in the town centre will still be used.
A Burns Night Carnival will return to the High Street on 22 January which will see a community cast of thousands present a reworking of Tam O'Shanter.
Town centre venues including the Theatre Royal and the new Stove building will be used for the first time, with traditional sites like the Globe and the Coach and Horses continuing to be used.
Graham Main, executive producer for Electric Theatre Workshop, which produces Big Burns Supper, said: "When we first brought the Spiegeltent to Dumfries - there was almost a venue shortage.
"We were quite blown away by how popular some of our events became.
"The fact of the matter is we have outgrown the Spiegeltent capacity in just four of those five years.
"If we are going to grow - we need to think about it now."
The award-winning Le Haggis show is one of the events to move to the Easterbrook Hall.
Elaine Carruthers, marketing manager for the Crichton Trust, said: "This is a really exciting development and helps to position the festival across all of the assets Dumfries has.
"The estate contributes to the overall charm of the town, and it is great to see it playing a part in one of the region's leading cultural events."
The full programme for the Big Burns Supper will be announced on St Andrew's Day but other announcements are expected during November.


Mounting a year-long fake news campaign can cost about $400,000 (Â£315,000), suggests a report.

The Trend Micro report draws on price lists found on sites that run the misinformation campaigns.
Costs cover setting up fake social media profiles, writing false news stories and spreading them via fictitious followers.
Questions over the influence of fake news has led Google and Facebook to promise to curb its spread.
In its report, Trend Micro looked at Russian, Chinese, Middle Eastern and English language sites offering all kinds of services based around manipulating social media, search engines and news organisations.
The services on offer included:
Some of the services profiled gave very detailed breakdowns of what could be done to influence political debate or manipulate the media.
The $50,000 (Â£39,000) cost of discrediting a journalist involved fake news stories contradicting the target's articles promoted via paid upvotes, likes, retweets and comments. It also involved tens of thousands of bots swamping a target's Twitter feed with malicious comments or posting strongly critical comments on stories.
"It's never been easier to manipulate social media and other online platforms to affect and amplify public opinion," said Trend Micro spokesman Bharat Mistry.
Key to making the campaigns work, said the report, was creating stories, posts and discussions that "pander to its audience's ideologies".
Trend Micro said one good way to limit the impact of fake news was to educate users and give them tools to spot unreliable sources and concocted campaigns.
Good indicators were photoshopped photographs, provocative headlines, website names that resemble legitimate media groups and a lack of verifiable details on stories.
In addition, said Trend Micro, people should consume a wide range of news stories
"Stories that don't align with your own beliefs don't necessarily mean they're fake." it said.


Researchers at Oxford University have found that the quality of news available to British voters on Twitter is superior to that available to Americans ahead of the election of Donald Trump as president.

The Oxford Internet Institute has also discovered that there have been more tweets about Labour than other political parties so far in the campaign.
After the dramatic and tight races that led to Brexit and President Trump, there has been wild speculation about extremists, foreign powers, and wealthy individuals trying to use social media to degrade the truth and influence elections.
The early indications are that any such interference on Twitter doesn't match that which occurred in America last year.
"It's not as big of a problem as it was in the States," says researcher Monica Kaminska.
"We found that in the lead-up to the election, people are sharing quality news - news from professional news organisations - and that's 53% of the total content shared.
"Junk news has been around 13% - so a big difference there."
The academics at Oxford don't speculate on why this might be, but likely factors include the vastly greater sums that are spent on American elections, and the fact much of the news shared on social media emanates from broadcasters - including the BBC - who are heavily regulated.
It is too soon to conclude, however, that enemies of British democracy have made no effort to influence the result on 8 June.


It has long been like a fractious, but ultimately friendly, relationship between siblings.

To New Zealanders, their big brother across the Tasman Sea in Australia was always brash and exciting. Lured by the prospect of well-paid jobs and sunshine, the Kiwis have traditionally flocked west in vast numbers.
But things are changing. New Zealand has a renewed sense of confidence, and buoyed by the international success of the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit trilogies it is not only foreign tourists that are heading to Middle Earth. Others are seeking fresh opportunities in a "rock star" economy.
For the first time in 24 years, more people are now heading east from Australia to New Zealand.
The end of a long mining boom in Australia and the rebounding of its trans-Tasman neighbour's fortunes are among the main factors.
"We've been describing New Zealand as a rock star in the sense that it has been outperforming almost all of the other developed world economies over the past couple of years," says Paul Bloxham, HSBC's chief economist for Australia and New Zealand
Recent figures show that employment growth in Australia is running at 2%, while across the Tasman Sea the Kiwis are enjoying rates of more than 3%.
The government in Wellington is expecting a budget surplus within the next year or two, while its counterpart in Canberra can see only deficits ahead.
At the heart of the Kiwi recovery are construction booms in Auckland and post-earthquake Christchurch.
"The tide has turned a little bit now and we are seeing Australians suddenly taking more notice of what's going on in New Zealand that has an economy which is growing really strongly," says Peter Townsend, chief executive of the Canterbury Employers' Chamber of Commerce.
"New Zealand has the second-largest diaspora in the world, as I understand it on a per capita basis, so we have a million Kiwis living offshore.
"It is the New Zealand way to go offshore and experience new things, and the economic positioning of New Zealand now and the rebuild of Christchurch is attracting some of those Kiwis back home," he says.
Official reports show that New Zealand had a net inflow of 100 migrants from Australia in April - the first month that the land of the Long White Cloud has had an overall gain from its larger cousin since 1991.
Those numbers might be relatively small, but they show that a long-term loss of talent has been arrested, at least for now.
Kiwis are inveterate travellers, but, crucially, it seems more are deciding to come home after spending time in Bondi Beach in Sydney and beyond.
The rivalry between these two Antipodean nations is legendary. There is at times tension. Australians often have to brush aside barbs that they are arrogant and rude, while Kiwis will feel they bear the brunt of far too many jokes about sheep.
Although bonded by a shared wartime history at Gallipoli in 1915, when they fought as independent nations for the first time, Australia and New Zealand will scrap and argue over almost anything.
"It is always fun to talk to the West Island [Australia] and say you are welcome to come over," quips New Zealand's Economic Development Minister, Steven Joyce.
"We have donated a lot of labour to Australia over the last 25 years. It was one of the things that we as a government felt was really important. Not for bragging rights over the Australians, although that's a bit of fun, but actually the more important thing is you can't have an on-going drain of your key talent out of the country all the time."
New Zealand is increasingly on the radar of more young Australians, who have traditionally sought work in the boom mining states of Western Australia and Queensland, or further afield in Asia or Europe.
A year ago, Dylan Matthews was so eager to kick-start a new life in Christchurch that he slept rough in a park before finding a job. The 21-year old now works as a hotel receptionist after leaving behind his friends and family back home in the port city of Newcastle, north of Sydney. He couldn't be happier.
"I'm glad not to be there anymore, especially now. I'm glad I did leave because there are not many jobs there at the moment," he says.
"I'm not surprised it is changing with what is going on in Australia and then what is going on here as well,  [with] the amount of jobs in Christchurch.
"Then if you see what is actually on offer over here as well in terms of travelling, it is pretty good."
But New Zealand's migration shift is not just about work-hungry Australians and homesick Kiwis. Government statistics have shown the country had an overall gain of 56,800 people in the year to April, well up from the 34,400 the year before.
Migrants from India, China and Britain top the list.
In Christchurch, the Brits are the second largest group of foreign labour behind the Filipinos.
Andrew Pountney, from Worcestershire, works for Hawkins Construction and he's relishing the opportunities in New Zealand.
"I don't miss fighting for work [in the UK]," he says. "We were at the back end of a recession when we left and the company I was working for was really struggling with securing work, but there is no end of work here in Christchurch at the moment, so I've got no complaints."
Across the city, another British expatriate hired by Hawkins, Rebekah Sanderson from Leeds, has fitted seamlessly into a new life 11,000 miles from home.
"Even though the pace of work here at the moment is frenetic, there is still more work-life balance here than there was in the UK.
"Life here is just too good. It is too nice a way to live to give it up anytime soon," she says.
For many foreigners, the Land of the Long White Cloud has a silver lining.


Police officers, soldiers, emergency services and intelligence officials are taking part in London's largest counter-terrorism exercise to date.

The simulation of a terror attack has been six months in the planning.
The exercise - codenamed Strong Tower - involves 1,000 police officers at locations across the capital until Wednesday afternoon.
Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe said it would test responses to extremists using firearms.
It comes days after 38 people were killed by a gunman in Tunisia, the majority of them British holidaymakers.
The Metropolitan Police says this week's exercise in London is not based on any specific intelligence and is part of a long-term strategy of planning and preparing for all possible types of terror attack.
Scotland Yard began planning the two-day event in January and only a dozen people know the full script to ensure that the officers and other services taking part face the maximum challenge.
Senior officers say that while much of the exercise will be hidden from view, there may be occasions when the public hear loud noises or see areas being cordoned off. Scotland Yard will be posting updates about the exercise to Twitter, using the hashtag #999exercise.
Sir Bernard said the threat level for terrorism had been raised over the last year, making it vital "that we train and we learn".
He said: "The reason we have exercises like today is because, obviously, we are concerned there are people planning terrorist events. We intend first of all to stop them from getting to attack. But should we not stop the terrorists in their planning, it's essential we disrupt them in any of the attacks that may take place."
Ch Supt Paul Rickett told the BBC it was "incredibly important" that the emergency services were prepared for this type of scenario.
"Events have told us around the world that the last thing you can be is complacent, so that is why it is important we continually respond to the emerging threat, change our tactics and we test our capability and readiness to respond," he said.
By Dominic Casciani, BBC home affairs correspondent
Although the nature of this "live play" exercise sounds similar to the attack in Tunisia, this event has been six months in the planning and is part of a regular programme.
The officers who came on shift this morning knew they were taking part in an exercise - but nothing about what they would be facing. Not even the "gold commander", the senior officer making the big decisions in the operations room, will know what's going to happen.
The exercise is influenced by what happened during two incidents: the Charlie Hebdo attack in Paris and the cafe siege in Sydney.
Scotland Yard stresses that whatever happens during this exercise, it doesn't mean they have specific intelligence that such an event could occur. But they do want to ensure they have planned for every conceivable type of incident in case it should ever come to pass.
How safe is the UK a decade after 7/7?
Deputy Assistant Commissioner Maxine de Brunner, the exercise's director, said the aim was to test and challenge police and other agencies in an "ambitious multi-site marauding terrorist attack".
"This exercise will be an on-going fast-paced terrorist situation and we will explore how we as London's agencies respond," said DAC de Brunner.
"The exercise is at the extreme end of what might happen."
Emergency services are under a legal duty to test their preparedness for all manner of crises from terrorism attacks to flooding.
Many counter-terrorism training exercises take place out of view around the country and the last comparable exercise of this nature was in London in 2012.
In that exercise, the Metropolitan Police and others tested how they would respond to an attack on the London Underground involving a possible radiological or chemical device.
But while Tuesday and Wednesday's exercise is likely to involve comparable numbers of people, it has been designed to stretch them much further by moving the incident around the city - although nobody other than the directors know exactly what is going to happen.
The agencies involved in the operation include the police, London Fire Brigade, London Ambulance Service, Transport For London, the NHS and a string of government departments who will face tests of their decision-making and crisis-management skills.


Star Wars: The Force Awakens has become the UK's biggest film of 2015 after just 16 days of release, with takings of £94.06m beating Spectre's £93.5m.

JJ Abrams' film has also overtaken Avatar (£94m) as the second most successful film in history in the UK.
But Skyfall still reigns supreme as the UK's highest-grossing film of all time with £103m in 2012.
The Force Awakens sees the return of original cast members Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher and Mark Hamill.
It also introduced audiences to British actors Daisy Ridley and John Boyega, who have starring roles in the seventh movie in George Lucas's franchise.
At the end of December, Star Wars: The Force Awakens also became the fastest film to take $1bn (£674m) at the global box office.
It achieved the feat in 12 days, beating the previous record of 13 days set by Jurassic World in June.
But while Jurassic World had the benefit of record takings in China over the period, The Force Awakens had yet to open there when the figures were released.
It still has a way to go before it can compete with the two films which took more than $2bn worldwide - 1997's Titanic ($2.18bn; £1.45bn) and 2009's Avatar ($2.78bn; £1.85bn).
Both were directed by James Cameron and were also released in the same pre-Christmas slot as The Force Awakens.


Italy plans to build simple, wooden chalet-style huts within three months for the 2,500 people displaced by the 24 August earthquake.

Italian media say the structures - used in Onna after a devastating 2009 earthquake - are favoured over tents, such as those currently being used, or converted shipping containers.
The 6.2-magnitude quake last Wednesday shattered Amatrice and two other towns in mountains north-east of Rome.
Some 290 people died in the disaster.
Prime Minister Matteo Renzi discussed reconstruction plans on Sunday with Renzo Piano, one of Italy's most renowned architects.
The authorities face the challenge of getting survivors into safe, warm accommodation before the winter, which can get very cold in the quake-hit region of the Apennine mountains.
Italy's Corriere della Sera newspaper reports (in Italian) that the wooden huts would be erected close to people's damaged or destroyed homes, which is where most of them want to be.
Despite the tented camps, some survivors still prefer to sleep in their cars, near their homes, fearing that looters could steal their possessions amid the rubble.
When the weather gets colder, people will be given temporary rooms in hotels by the sea, before moving into the huts, or "mini-chalets", Amatrice mayor Sergio Pirozzi said.
The wooden huts will have one or two bedrooms, a kitchen and bathroom, costing â‚¬1,400 (Â£1,200; $1,564) per square metre (10.7 sq ft). A small hut of 40 sq m would cost about â‚¬55,000 - much more than a container of similar size, Corriere della Sera reports.


New Horizons has acquired yet another stunning view of Pluto.

The US space agency probe captured the latest image on Tuesday when it was just under eight million km from the dwarf world.
As of Thursday, New Horizons had moved to within six million km, heading for its historic flyby next week.
The new picture was the first to be returned following the computer hiccup at the weekend that saw the probe briefly drop communications with Earth.
The face of Pluto seen in the image is broadly that which will be examined in detail on 14 July.
It includes a large dark region near Pluto's equator, dubbed "the whale", and a roughly heart-shaped bright area spanning 2,000km.
At closest approach, New Horizons will be about 12,500km above the surface.
Its high-resolution camera Lorri should then be able to discern features at a resolution better than 100m per pixel.
Lorri is responsible for the view seen on this page, too, but the colour information has been overlaid from the probe's other camera, Ralph.
"They're still a little blurry but they're by far the best pictures we've ever seen of Pluto, and they're only going to get better," said John Spencer from the Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) in Colorado, US, one of the New Horizons co-investigators.
"Right now they're just showing us that Pluto is really weird. It's got some extremely dark areas, some extremely bright areas, and we don't know what any of them are yet," Dr Spencer told Newshour on the BBC World Service.
He and his colleagues believe the brightest patch might be covered in frozen carbon monoxide, while the dark swathe may be a deposit of hydrocarbons, burnt out of Pluto's atmosphere by UV light and cosmic rays.
But this is all guesswork at the moment.
"We will get pictures 500 times better than this next Tuesday, when we have our closest approach," Dr Spencer said.
When it arrives at the dwarf planet, New Horizons will be travelling at almost 14km/s - far too fast to go into orbit.
Instead, it will execute an automated, pre-planned reconnaissance, grabbing as many pictures and other data as it can as it barrels past the 2,300km-wide dwarf and its five known moons: Charon, Styx, Nix, Kerberos and Hydra.
The flyby occurs on the 50th anniversary of the first successful American pass of Mars by the Mariner 4 spacecraft.
By way of comparison, New Horizons will gather 5,000 times as much data at Pluto than Mariner did at the Red Planet.
New Horizons' difficulty is getting all that information back to Earth. The distance to Pluto is vast - more than 4.5 billion km - and this makes for very low bit rates.
It will take 16 months to send back all the science acquired over the coming days.
The BBC will be screening a special Sky At Night programme called Pluto Revealed on Monday 20 July, which will recap all the big moments from the New Horizons flyby.
Jonathan.Amos-INTERNET@bbc.co.uk and follow me on Twitter: @BBCAmos


The brooding landscape which was home to a group of infamous 17th Century witches is receiving a share of £31m Lottery funding.

The Heritage Lottery Fund announced on Halloween it is providing £2m to restore wildlife and the fabric of Pendle Hill.
It is one of 31 projects to receive funding in the latest tranche of projects across the country.
Pendle is where a group of 10 people were convicted of witchcraft in 1612.
The 400th anniversary, in 2012, was celebrated with a series of events, including a poem by Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy and the unveiling of a statue.
The hill is most closely associated with the county's notorious witch trials, held in an atmosphere of superstition and religious persecution.
A man who alleged he was cursed by a self-confessed witch collapsed just moments after the curse was put on him.
The case, with accusations and counter-accusations involving two families, ended with the conviction of 10 people of witchcraft in a trial whose star witness was Jennet Device, the nine-year-old daughter of one of the accused.
The Pendle Hill project wants to gather and research other stories of the area's heritage, including the founding of the Quaker movement by George Fox.
The story of the Pendle witch trials helps bring in millions of pounds to the local economy each year, according to council figures.
Environment minister Rory Stewart said: "The Heritage Lottery Fund is now playing an absolutely central role in conserving and restoring our landscape.
"This is only the beginning of what we can all do, working together, to really protect and transform nature and beauty across the British Isles."
He added that "above all" it will ensure "people are connected to those landscapes".
Drew Bennellick, HLF's head of landscape and natural heritage, said landscapes are "more than just beautiful scenery: they are the backdrop to some of history's most notorious events".
He said Pendle Hill's peat bogs and rugged heather moorland was witness to the trials that spread across the county in the 1600s.
The Landscape Partnership programme is now in its 11th year and has revealed "so many fascinating hidden histories as well as protecting many of our most breathtaking and iconic landmarks."
- Elan Links, People, Nature and Water - Mid Wales £1.7m
- Living Levels Partnership, Gwent, South Wales, £2.8m
- North Isles Landscape Partnership Scheme, Orkney Islands, Scotland £3m
- Galloway Glens Landscape Partnership, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland £2.9m
- Lough Erne Landscape Partnership, Fermanagh, Northern Ireland £2.9m
- Nenescape: Revealing the Hidden Stories of the Nene Valley, Northampton £2.8m
- Brightwater Landscape Partnership, County Durham £2.8m
- Revitalising Redesdale, Northumberland £1.8m
- First and Last - Our Living Working Landscape, Penwith, Cornwall £2.7m


More than 500 people have signed a petition protesting about the closure of a Speyside bank.

The Clydesdale branch in Aberlour is one of eight across the north east of Scotland due to shut under plans announced by the company last week.
The closure in May will see Aberlour accounts transferred to Keith.
Campaigners argue that disadvantages customers who do not have access to a car because there is no direct bus link between the two communities.
Clydesdale said the move had been prompted by the trend towards electronic banking.


BBC Radio Derby has officially renamed its building in honour of presenter Colin Bloomfield, a year after his death from skin cancer.

The 33-year-old spent 10 years with the station working as a reporter, Derby County commentator and breakfast show presenter.
His mum Alison said she was amazed and humbled at the honour.
It comes a day after the Colin Bloomfield sun shade was revealed at Alvaston Park in Derby.
Mrs Bloomfield unveiled the renamed Bloomfield House in a short ceremony a year to the day that Colin died at a Shrewsbury hospice.
Updates on this story and more from Derbyshire
His death came just 11 months after his father, former BBC Radio Shropshire editor Lawrie Bloomfield, died.
Speaking as she cut the ribbon, Mrs Bloomfield said: "That is just amazing, I think I'm going to cry.
"His father would be so proud of him. This is Colin's accolade and with bells on.
"I've felt the pressure but it's been helped by the support of compassionate Derbyshire people.
"All I can say is rest in peace. Thank you all for caring."
Many listeners were touched by Colin's openness and optimism about his diagnosis for stage four melanoma.
Before he died, he put his name to the Colin Bloomfield Melanoma Appeal, which has since raised more than £170,000.
The funds help to teach tens of thousands of school children about the dangers of the sun with the Sun Safe Schools programme.
It also paid for the sun shade in Alvaston as well as the UK's first public UV sun meter  - called the Colin Bloomfield Sun Meter - in Markeaton Park.
A second sun shade and UV meter is also being installed in West Park, Long Eaton, Derbyshire, this summer.


Spanish police have arrested 21 Bulgarians after seizing a ship off the southern port of Cadiz which was carrying about three tonnes of cocaine.

The SV Nikolay, seized on Monday, belongs to a firm in the Bulgarian port of Burgas, Bulgaria's BTA news agency reports. It was intercepted some 80km (50 miles) off Cadiz.
The South American cocaine was heading for Galicia, in north-western Spain.
Six Colombians were also arrested in Spain in the investigation.
The ship is owned by Burgas-based shipping firm Seaborne Trade. The firm's manager Doychin Doychev, quoted by BTA, said he had lost contact with the ship a day before it was intercepted. The crew are mainly Bulgarians from Burgas and Varna, he said.
Spanish police say they have seized nearly five tonnes of cocaine in total in recent days - more than in the whole of last year.


Danny Wright eventually made Cheltenham's pressure pay to see off promotion-chasing Carlisle at Whaddon Road.

The Robins had endured a frustrating evening despite bossing much of the contest before second-half substitute Wright bundled home James Dayton's high cross at the far post in the 85th minute.
It was the least Cheltenham deserved for being the more enterprising side on a tricky Whaddon Road surface as Gary Johnson's men put together three straight wins in League Two for the first time this season.
Carl Winchester and the lively Billy Waters went close for the hosts early on but United were agonisingly close to a spectacular opener after 17 minutes when Mike Jones hit the crossbar from 25 yards.
Waters fired a half-volley straight at goalkeeper Mark Gillespie eight minutes before half-time as the hosts remained on the front foot, while Kyle Wootton's point-blank header was pushed away seconds prior to the interval.
After the break, Wootton thumped over after connecting with Kyle Storer's wild blast, Winchester fired wide of the near post and Wright somehow scooped over from six yards five minutes after coming on.
But with time ticking away, Wright made no mistake to give Cheltenham a nine-point cushion over the bottom two.
Match report supplied by the Press Association.
Match ends, Cheltenham Town 1, Carlisle United 0.
Second Half ends, Cheltenham Town 1, Carlisle United 0.
Attempt saved. Shaun Brisley (Carlisle United) right footed shot from the right side of the box is saved in the top centre of the goal.
Foul by Dan Holman (Cheltenham Town).
Shaun Brisley (Carlisle United) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
William Boyle (Cheltenham Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by John O'Sullivan (Carlisle United).
Jamie Proctor (Carlisle United) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
William Boyle (Cheltenham Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Jamie Proctor (Carlisle United).
Attempt missed. Michael Jones (Carlisle United) right footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the left.
Manny Onariase (Cheltenham Town) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Foul by Manny Onariase (Cheltenham Town).
Jamie Proctor (Carlisle United) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Goal!  Cheltenham Town 1, Carlisle United 0. Daniel Wright (Cheltenham Town) header from very close range to the top left corner.
Substitution, Cheltenham Town. James Dayton replaces Kyle Storer.
Substitution, Carlisle United. Tom Miller replaces James Bailey.
Hand ball by Daniel Wright (Cheltenham Town).
Foul by Liam Davis (Cheltenham Town).
John O'Sullivan (Carlisle United) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Attempt missed. Dan Holman (Cheltenham Town) right footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses to the right.
Harry Pell (Cheltenham Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Luke Joyce (Carlisle United).
Corner,  Carlisle United. Conceded by Liam Davis.
Substitution, Carlisle United. John O'Sullivan replaces Reggie Lambe.
Attempt missed. Daniel Wright (Cheltenham Town) right footed shot from the centre of the box is too high.
Substitution, Carlisle United. Jabo Ibehre replaces George Waring.
Substitution, Cheltenham Town. Daniel Wright replaces Kyle Wootton.
Substitution, Cheltenham Town. Dan Holman replaces Billy Waters.
Liam Davis (Cheltenham Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Jamie Proctor (Carlisle United).
Corner,  Cheltenham Town. Conceded by Shaun Brisley.
Attempt missed. Carl Winchester (Cheltenham Town) right footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses to the left.
Attempt missed. Kyle Wootton (Cheltenham Town) header from the centre of the box is just a bit too high.
Manny Onariase (Cheltenham Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Luke Joyce (Carlisle United).
Second Half begins Cheltenham Town 0, Carlisle United 0.
First Half ends, Cheltenham Town 0, Carlisle United 0.
Attempt saved. Carl Winchester (Cheltenham Town) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the centre of the goal.
Attempt missed. Carl Winchester (Cheltenham Town) left footed shot from outside the box is too high.


A new railway station in Ceredigion would have a big impact on the regional economy, a Labour AM member says.

Bow Street station, on the Cambrian line north of Aberystwyth, was closed in 1965 as part of the Beeching cuts.
The Welsh Government is seeking £6.8m from the UK government to cover three quarters of the cost of a new station.
Mid and West Wales AM Eluned Morgan said there was a "very strong" economic case for the project, with a new university campus opening up.
"Rail infrastructure is crucial to opening up the connections to Aberystwyth and beyond," she said.
"There is a welcome upturn in economic activity in the area, including the new Aberystwyth University campus nearby.
"This rail stop will cut down on traffic, promote business, reduce pollution, provide a vital transport system for commuters and the elderly."
The Welsh Government has applied for a £6.8m grant for part funding from the UK government for the project which would include a new train station and interchange plus car parking and bus stops.
Economy Secretary Ken Skates said he had submitted a "strong" application for 75% of the cost of the new station - the maximum the UK Government could cover.
He said the Welsh Government would provide the remaining 25% of the funding - £1.7m.
Proposals for a new station at Bow Street have been shown at a public event and, if approved, is hoped will open in 2019.
It would be built a short distance south of the original station, which is now the site of a builders' merchants.
A spokesman for Ceredigion council said it had found "considerable support" for the scheme in consultation.
The authority expected to hear the outcome of the funding application early in 2017.
Ms Morgan said she also hoped Welsh ministers would also consider reopening Carno station, also on the Cambrian line, in Powys, which closed in 1963.


Turkey's armed forces have been dealt a significant psychological blow by the attempted coup, and their prestige and status have been damaged.

Turks had assumed that coups were a thing of the past.
Not only does this latest plot come as a threat to the country's democracy but it has also stymied its ability to act in its key role as a provider of regional security.
The forces' integrity will be hard to salvage and chronic problems in Turkey's civilian-military relations, which many thought had been recuperating in the past few years, will now be exacerbated instead.
Public perception of the armed forces had already been hit in recent years by allegations of coup plots against the AKP government of Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Importantly, those cases were eventually thrown out because of mostly fabricated evidence.
This attempted coup and the previous alleged plots have been blamed on Fetullah Gulen, a controversial US-based Islamic cleric, whose movement is suspected of infiltrating public and private ranks with the eventual aim of taking over the reins of the country.
Turkey's armed forces had already been trying to recover from the prosecution of high-ranking officers caught up in two cases that were eventually overturned. This botched coup has reversed this scenario.
More than 100 generals have been detained for their involvement, amounting to nearly a third of Turkey's high-ranking officers.
Almost all major army units have lost at least one of their commanding officers.
Aside from the top brass, the purges have so far resulted in the arrest of more than 3,000 soldiers and some 7,500 police officers.
Whilst the purges are undoubtedly necessary in light of the acute threat posed by the conspirators, they will inevitably cripple the morale and capabilities of the Turkish forces, which are currently facing a series of unprecedented threats.
In addition to numerous one- and two-star generals, the alleged conspirators include Adem Huduti, who commanded the 2nd Army.
The 2nd Army has the task of protecting the most perilous borders - with Syria, Iraq and Iran - and leads the fight against the Kurdish militant PKK in south-eastern Turkey. So the attempted coup may have a considerable impact on Turkey's ongoing fight against the PKK.
The failed putsch will also affect the combat against jihadist group Islamic State (IS).
IS has escalated its operations in Turkey substantially over the last year.
Both dismantling its networks within the country and preventing the transit of jihadists from Syria require close collaboration between the armed forces, police and national intelligence.
Yet by targeting the police and national intelligence headquarters and clashing with police forces throughout the night, the coup plotters have destroyed all mutual trust and confidence between the three pillars of Turkish security.
Furthermore, as long as the purges continue in both military and police ranks, neither side is likely to fully embrace the other as a trustworthy partner.
This will come as a major complication in Turkey's effectiveness in tackling IS.
This mistrust is also likely to characterise how the country's political leadership will view the armed forces, at least until it is confident that the conspirators have been weeded out.
Nonetheless, the aftershocks of the plot will continue to plague civilian-military relations for the foreseeable future.
What is more, Turkey's ability to contribute to Nato is likely to be reduced visibly, as both an effective deterrence posture and force projection rely strongly on the cohesion between the political and military elites over the strategic objectives of the country,
The coup attempt may also push the leadership into rethinking the country's involvement in the anti-IS coalition, given that a number of fighter planes that took part used Incirlik airbase. The base also hosts foreign aircraft belonging to the anti-IS coalition.
Though it failed to unseat Turkey's elected government, the 15 July coup plot succeeded in hampering Turkey's ability to protect itself and to act as a security provider in a volatile region that will continue to present complex security challenges for Nato.
It is not only for Turkey's sake but for Nato's too that the Transatlantic Alliance will need to stand by Turkey at this difficult time.
Doruk Ergun is a research fellow at the Centre for Economics and Foreign Policy Studies (EDAM) in Istanbul.


A man is in hospital with "life-threatening injuries" after a fight in the centre of Wakefield.

Police said a brawl broke out among a number of people in a takeaway and spilled out on to Westgate at about 05:00 GMT.
A 38-year-old man from Bradford was punched in the face and hit his head on the road. He is being treated at Leeds General Infirmary.
Four men in their 20s have been arrested and are being questioned.
Det Supt Nick Wallen, from West Yorkshire Police, said "tragic circumstances" led to the injury.
"It is always worth taking that deep breath, turning and walking away", he said.
Police said officers would be in the area on Saturday night to speak to nightclubbers.


Sinn Féin's northern leader Michelle O'Neill has claimed the party is heading for another "groundbreaking" election next month.

She said "the new certainties are gone and a new political era is opening up in Irish politics".
Mrs O'Neill made the comments at the party's manifesto launch in Dungannon, County Tyrone.
Sinn Féin is hoping to capitalise on its impressive showing at the assembly election in March.
The party came within one seat of matching the Democratic Unionist Party's (DUP) total number of seats in Stormont.
In choosing to go to the Fermanagh and South Tyrone constituency for the manifesto launch, the party's leadership signalled it as one of its prime target seats in the 8 June election.
Sinn Féin also hopes to add South Down and North Belfast to its existing four seats.
However, on Monday, Mrs O'Neill was careful to avoid revealing how many constituencies the party hopes to win.
"Whilst I'm not going to give you a number, we're engaged on the doorsteps and the canvassing is going so well," she said.
"People are very positive in their feedback because people know Sinn Féin are standing up for their rights.
"This is very much about taking an anti-Brexit stance; this is very much about taking an anti-Tory cuts stance; very much about progressive politics.
"So, I have no doubt that we are going to do well in this election. This is going to be another momentous election. The fact that so many people are engaged in politics - it all bodes well."
Sticking with the optimistic theme, she said the assembly election had "activated a transformation unimaginable to the founders of the northern state."
There are no surprises in the 28-page manifesto, which was published in English and Irish.
Instead it hammers home the familiar messages the party has based its strategy on for much of the past year:
Mrs O'Neill said that while the party had not wanted a general election it still represented "the opportunity of a lifetime for people to come out and voice their concerns again in relation to Brexit".


Nicki Minaj has apologised after the lyric video for her 'Only' track was accused of containing Nazi imagery.

The rapper and songwriter said she would never condone Nazism in her art.
She added that both the producer and the person in charge of the video "happen to be Jewish".
The video also features rapper Drake, who is half Jewish.
Minaj said the video had not been influenced by Adolf Hitler's party but by a cartoon called Metalocalypse and also by Sin City, the comic book that was made into a film.
The director Jeff Osborne has been retweeting both positive and negative reviews of the video.
Her apology came after Anti-Defamation League, one of the top civil rights agency in the US said the video used "Third Reich imagery".
They argued the video was "a trivialization of the history of that era".
In the video Nicki Minaj is portrayed wearing a black body suit with stylised black letters on her chest. Some fans said this resembled a swastika.
Long red banners bearing the logo hang above her as she sits at the end of a corridor of tanks.
Guns fade across the screen as a drawing of Chris Brown in an authoritarian uniform flashes up, the logo emblazoned on his cap.
Troops in futuristic outfits are also drawn into the video, as well as grim reapers, futuristic flashing gas masks and storm trooper-type characters who appear to fan Minaj.  The ADL welcomed her apology, adding "We hope that she will take further steps to educate herself and her fans about who the Nazis were and why we should never take genocide or the Holocaust lightly."
Her full Twitter comments can be seen below.


Rescuers have gone to the aid of 21 long-finned pilot whales which stranded on the shore at Staffin on Skye.

British Divers Marine Life Rescue said 18 of the animals were floated back out to sea at about 04:00 on Tuesday. Two more were later floated.
However, several of the whales then stranded on the shores of nearby Staffin Island.
It was understood that eight of the whales have died and nine remain stranded on the small island.
The coastguard said it could be high tide at 19:00 before those animals could be pushed back into open water.
It was believed the stranding was caused by a female whale getting into difficulty while calving. The calf died.
Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust raised the alarm after seeing whales in distress on Monday afternoon.
Environment Secretary Richard Lochhead said the Scottish government was offering assistance to the effort to save the whales.
He said: "I am very concerned to hear about this stranding of pilot whales on Skye.
"Marine Scotland and British Divers Marine Life Rescue are currently working hard to alleviate the situation.
"We have a patrol vessel and other staff on-site and I am being kept informed of the situation.
"Sadly it appears that some of the whales have already died and the situation is becoming increasingly difficult as the outgoing tide is leaving the stranded animals out of the water."


It is one of the standout moments of the domestic football calendar - FA Cup third-round weekend.

Among the highlights were League Two Plymouth taking 8,000 fans to Liverpool and holding the Premier League side to a 0-0 draw, and National League Lincoln City drawing 2-2 at Ipswich Town. Elsewhere, top-flight teams Stoke and Bournemouth went out to Wolves and Millwall respectively.
Throughout the weekend, we asked you for your FA Cup stories, whether from following your team this year or any memories of success - or failure - in the past.
And the tweets, pictures and videos you sent to us as part of the BBC's #nogutsnoglory campaign showed just why the FA Cup remains the most prestigious - and romantic - domestic cup competition in world football.


Canada is last compared with its global peers when it comes to defence and aid spending, a new report says.

Ottawa came less than halfway to meeting international spending benchmarks in those areas.
The Global Canada study uses those two funding areas to measure a country's global engagement.
The analysis also suggests Canada's level of spending on international assistance as a share of GDP is close to an all-time low.
Mr Trudeau made "Canada is back" a catchphrase after winning the federal election in 2015 and promised a new era of global engagement.
Global Canada founder Robert Greenhill, a former president of the federal development agency, said that Canada is not back, it is "far back".
"We actually don't believe in doing our fair share at this point," he said.
The report, Assessing Canada's Global Engagement Gap, released on Wednesday, compares Canada's share of national income committed to both collective security and to international assistance with that of other G7 nations and similar mid-sized, advanced countries like Norway and Australia.
Canada and Japan were tied in last place by committing 1.2% of GDP to combined spending on defence and aid.
In comparison, the UK and Norway spent 2.6%, Germany spent 1.7% and Italy spent 1.5%.
The US spent 3.5%, mostly on defence.
US President Barack Obama has pressured Canada to increase its Nato spending.  President-elect Donald Trump has also been critical of laggard Nato nations.
Canada currently spends 0.97% of its GDP on the military alliance, less than half the 2% benchmark.
Looking at just foreign aid, the analysis, using the Gross National Income (GNI) measure, suggests the Liberal government's commitment to development in its first year was slightly lower than the spending average under Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper's government - 0.26 % of GNI compared to 0.30% GNI.
The international target for foreign aid spending is 0.70% of GNI.
Critics have repeatedly singled out Canada over the years for falling short on aid funding.
Mr Trudeau has said that United Nations target is too ambitious for Canada in the near future.
Mr Greenhill said the Trudeau government inherited a history of cuts to development from the 1990s and between 2010-14.
"Almost for a generation Canadians politicians have taken their eye off their international commitments," he said.
Unless it increases funding in those areas, the current Liberal government will end up with the lowest commitment to development aid of any Canadian government in the last 50 years, according to the report.
Mr Greenhill estimated an annual investment of CA$4bn (US$3bn; Â£2.5bn) would be necessary to bring funding levels to those seen in the 1970s and 1980s.
"Being a G7 country and trying to shape a better world does have costs," he said.
There have been recent commitments by Mr Trudeau in both areas.
Last August, the government committed 600 troops, 150 police officers, and CA$450m over three years to a still unspecified United Nations peacekeeping operation.
It also pledged increased spending over two years to help the Global Fund, which focuses on the prevention and treatment of AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria in more than 100 countries.
Global Canada, founded in 2014, seeks to "advance Canada's global engagement".


A Dumfries pensioner has been identified as the victim of a two-vehicle crash on the A75 near Annan on Sunday.

Ian Austin, 83, died in hospital three days after the accident at the junction with the B6357.
He was driving a Honda Jazz which was in collision with an Audi A1.
Police said investigations into the cause of the collision were ongoing and the procurator fiscal had been informed.


A painting by Francis Bacon of his friend and fellow artist Lucian Freud has become the most expensive artwork ever sold at auction after it fetched $142m (£89m, 106m euros) in New York.

The triptych, Three Studies of Lucian Freud (1969), is considered one of Bacon's greatest masterpieces.
It was sold after six minutes of fierce bidding, Christie's auction house said.
The price eclipsed the $119.9m (£74m) paid for Edvard Munch's The Scream last year.
At the same auction, Jeff Koons broke the world record for a price paid for a single artwork by a living artist.
His sculpture Balloon Dog (Orange) - one of a series of five stainless steel sculptures in varying colours - fetched $58,4m (£36.7m).
The previous record for a living artist was set by a Gerhard Richter painting depicting an Italian city square, which sold in May for $37.1 million (£23.3m).
It was the first time Three Studies of Lucian Freud had been offered at auction and bidding opened at $80m (£50m, 60m euros). Its presale estimate was $85m (£53m, 64m euros).
By Will GompertzArts editor
In a world of supply and demand, it is not surprising that Bacon's huge triptych should sell for such an amount. It's unique, it's very high quality, and from an extremely famous period in the artist's life.
The subject, and Bacon's remarkable use of colour, captures a moment in art history where his friendship with Freud was at its closest. It represents a relationship that has already moved into legend.
What would be wonderful is if Freud's portrait of Bacon (painted around the same time but stolen from Berlin's National Gallery in 1988) was to be recovered and put back on public display, completing the story of these modern masters' mutual admiration.
A telephone bidder won with an offer of $127 million (£80m), which, after commission, means they will pay a total of $142m.
The auction house did not disclose the identity of the buyer.
Bacon, known for his triptychs, painted Three Studies of Lucian Freud in 1969 at London's Royal College of Art, after his studio was destroyed in a fire.
Francis Outred, head of Post-War and Contemporary Art at Christie's Europe, said the work was "a true masterpiece and one of the greatest paintings to come up for auction in a current generation".
"It marks Bacon and Freud's relationship, paying tribute to the creative and emotional kinship between the two artists," he added.
The pair met in 1945 and became close companions, painting each other on a number of occasions, before their relationship cooled during the 1970s.
Exhibited in Bacon's renowned retrospective at the Grand Palais, Paris in 1971-1972, the three panels that form the painting were separated in the mid-1970s.
One panel was shown at the Tate in 1985 before the three sections were reassembled.
The complete work was displayed in New Haven, Connecticut in 1999.
It got its first ever UK public viewing at Christie's in London in October this year.


Recalled wing Tim Visser admits Saturday's clash with Italy is crunch time for Scotland's Six Nations hopes.

A 10th straight championship loss would ramp up pressure on coach Vern Cotter and his team, but victory in Rome would restore optimism with two games left.
"For us, this is the make-or-break game where we can put ourselves in a good position to move forward," Visser said.
"But we are not looking further than the weekend. Italy are a good team at home and we have to get a win."
Dutch-born Visser returns for his first Test since facing South Africa at last year's World Cup.
After the tournament, he scored six tries in his first eight games for new club Harlequins, who he joined after a prolific six years at Edinburgh, before suffering a hamstring injury against Gloucester in late December.
But, after six weeks on the sidelines, two 80-minute outings for Quins in the last fortnight have seen the 28-year-old earn a swift return to Scotland duty.
"I have had a good period at Quins and I just have to bring that form onto the international stage," he said. "All the pressure is on me, so I will try to deliver.
"My rugby has gone back to how we used to play at Edinburgh back in the day.
"It is quite an expansive style at Quins. I get a lot of ball and am seeing the fruits of that. It has always been there. It just needs to come out."
Visser has scored three tries in his three previous Tests against Italy, including two in a thumping 48-7 World Cup warm-up Test victory last summer, the last meeting between the countries.
Scotland coach Cotter noted: "Tim is a finisher. He is good at scoring points - and we will need points.
"He has a nose for the line, for those five-pointers.
"It is key that we get him involved and get his hands on the ball quickly so he can express himself."
Media playback is not supported on this device
Scotland are aiming to end a nine-game Six Nations losing run with victory in Rome, scene of their last win in the championship two years ago.
However, despite the mounting pressure, Cotter insists that Saturday's pivotal encounter - one of Italy (10 times) and Scotland (four) have finished with the Wooden Spoon in all but two years of the Six Nations era - "is not the end of this Six Nations".
"There are two games after this one, but it is positive pressure," he insisted. "We want to play well, play better and get a result.
"We know we will have to be on top of our game to do that against this team.
"The players are desperate for a win. If we don't get it this week then we will strive for it next week.
"This team will win at some stage because there is that determination within and they are proud players."
Nevertheless Cotter, who spent eight years coaching French giants Clermont Auvergne, has warned that Italy will be dangerous opponents in Rome, where Scotland have lost on five of their eight Six Nations visits.
"You have got to understand the Latin mentality," he added. "They are very reactive and, if things are not going well around them, generally that is when they are at their most dangerous.
"They are proud people and a proud nation and they are playing well. They have young guys coming through and Carlo Canna at number 10 is running the game well for them.
"They set their sights on this game every year. They are playing at home, so there is a lot of pressure on them and it will be a real challenge for us to execute our game plan.
"It is going to be a tough environment, but the guys are really looking forward to it."


A man has appeared in court charged with murder and attempted murder following an attack in Grimsby.

Dean Southwick, 29, was found injured in Churchill Way on Friday and died later in hospital.
An 18-year-old local man, found in a nearby street, was also injured in the attack.
Michael David Preston, 19, of Durban Road, Grimsby, was remanded in custody by magistrates and is due to appear at Hull Crown Court on 14 October.


A 68-year-old woman in south west Scotland has been conned out of £20,000 in a telephone scam.

Police have issued a warning to the public after the incident in Castle Douglas on Thursday.
The woman was contacted by someone claiming to be from the Visa Fraud Unit over suspicious account activity.
She was asked to transfer funds to another account to "protect" them but when she did so the money was taken and the scam completed.
Det Insp Dean Little said: "More and more we are finding that those carrying out these scams are becoming increasingly proficient and professional in the way they come across to those whom they target.
"The public need to be alert to anyone who calls them out of the blue and take time to think about what it is that the caller is asking them.
"Our advice is to note details and before taking any action on that first call, stop and think, and even discuss with friends or relatives what it is the caller is requesting."
He also stressed that personal details or details of account numbers should never be discussed over the telephone.


Gay people are welcome in the membership of the DUP, First Minister Arlene Foster has told BBC News NI.

Many gay people vote for the party, said the DUP leader.
"This suggestion that every single person who is a homosexual wants to change the definition of marriage is wrong," she said.
"I know plenty of people in that community who don't want to see marriage redefined are quite content to live in partnership."
The first minister has denied letting online abuse harden her opposition to same-sex marriage.
The DUP's support for the traditional definition of marriage was a manifesto commitment, said Mrs Foster, adding that she would continue to use a petition of concern to veto any attempts to change the law on marriage at Stormont.
A petition of concern places the requirement of a cross-community majority on a motion in the assembly.
The first minister told PA on Thursday that she and her colleagues had been subjected to "vicious" online abuse by gay activists, but suggested that far from influencing her this would send her in "the opposite direction".
However, she told BBC News NI it was a complete misrepresentation to say the DUP makes its decisions on the basis of online abuse.
Mrs Foster told BBC Radio Ulster's Inside Politics programme that if people wanted to have a rational debate about marriage, she would be willing to engage, but "please don't call me all the names of the day on social media".
She said she would not meet LGBT activists who abuse her over the internet.
On the issue of women procuring abortion pills over the internet, the DUP leader said: "The law is what it is and if someone breaks it then due process has to be gone through."
She said it should be a matter for the individual conscience of medical professionals to decide whether they should tell the police about such cases, or maintain patient confidentiality.
The first minister said she had still not received a report from a working group on the issue of terminations in cases of fatal foetal abnormalities, even though it is a fortnight since the health and justice ministers confirmed they had been given the document.
Mrs Foster said the working group had been engaged in an "important piece of work on a hugely sensitive issue.
"Therefore we have to give it due consideration," she added.
She did not clarify whether DUP MLAs would be given a free vote on the matter should any change in the law be proposed.
On Brexit, the DUP leader welcomed the rejection of a court challenge by other parties at the Belfast High Court.
Mrs Foster described the case as "a futile attempt to drag the peace process and the Belfast agreement" into the Brexit debate.
The first minister was also scathing about next week's all island civic dialogue on Brexit, which is being convened by the Irish government.
She described it as an "absolute sideshow" which would merely provide an opportunity for political "grandstanding".
After the UK leaves the European Union, Mrs Foster insisted, there could be no question of people having to show passports to travel between Northern Ireland and Great Britain.
The DUP leader said she had told both the prime minister and the Northern Ireland secretary that it was a "red line" that Northern Ireland must be treated in exactly the same way as any other part of the UK when it comes to passports.
She said other issues, such as access to the European Single Market or the Customs Union, would develop during the course of the UK-EU negotiations.
Last weekend the Ulster Unionists invited the SDLP leader Colum Eastwood to their conference as a symbol of the unity of the new Stormont opposition.
But Mrs Foster described this as a "sign of desperation", and said there was absolutely no chance she would be inviting her partner in government, Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness, to a DUP conference anytime soon.


A UK industry body that represents thousands of truckers is to seek compensation from a cartel of five big truck firms over price-fixing.

The Road Haulage Association (RHA) wants to bring a claim against MAN, Volvo Group, Daimler, Iveco and DAF that could total up to Â£3.9bn.
The attempted action stems from a European Commission fine in 2016 for 14 years of collusion over truck-pricing.
Four of the firms were fined a record 2.93bn euros in 2016.
MAN did not have to pay a fine after whistleblowing.
The RHA says it will seek compensation of Â£6,000 per truck from the five firms, and has calculated that between 1997 and 2011 about 650,000 new trucks were sold.
RHA chief executive Richard Burnett said: "UK truck owners affected by the truck cartel have potentially paid too much for their lorries over a 14 year period and we're determined to get a fair deal for them...
"They [truck owners] have made it clear that they feel angry about the truck pricing cartel and want us to represent them."
A spokesman for the RHA said the body was expecting thousands of its members to sign up due to the numbers who had been in touch.
The action will be backed by litigation funder Therium Capital Management, which will cover the costs and provide insurance.
"There's no cost to joining the claim, or any other risks if the claim is unsuccessful," Mr Burnett said, adding that truckers need not be members of the RHA to join the claim.
The next stage of the process is for the RHA's legal team at Backhouse Jones, Exchange Chambers and Brick Court to apply to the Competition Appeal Tribunal in London to become representatives in the action.
The RHA hopes for the first hearing before the end of the year.
A Daimler spokesman said: "Daimler will conduct a thorough assessment of any asserted damage claims. The EU Commission has not made any findings at all in respect of damages.
"In any event, Daimler will vigorously defend itself against unjustified claims. Please understand, that Daimler will not comment any further on announced or ongoing legal proceedings."
MAN declined to comment.
Iveco and Volvo were approached for comment.
DAF was unavailable for comment at the time of writing.


A woman who was injured when a car ploughed into her family has died.

She and her partner were walking with their three children - one of them a baby in a pram - when the VW Beetle hit them before crashing into a cafe.
The dad suffered a serious head injury in the crash, in Upper Lake, Battle. The children and female driver were treated for shock and minor injuries.
Customers were trapped inside the cafe after Sunday afternoon's crash, but there were no reported injuries.
The 37-year-old mother died in hospital earlier, Sussex Police said.
The road was shut for several hours but has since reopened.
Sgt Dan Pitcher said: "We are now keen to talk to anyone who may have seen what happened or noticed the black VW being driven shortly beforehand."


Terminally-ill Bradley Lowery has led his beloved Sunderland team out as a mascot for the Black Cats' final home game in the Premier League.

The five-year-old from Blackhall, County Durham, is fighting neuroblastoma and was carried onto the pitch by his hero Jermain Defoe.
A banner organised by Newcastle fans in solidarity against cancer was flown over the stadium but split opinion.
Chants of "there's only one Bradley Lowery" echoed around the stadium.
Proceeds from the match day programme, which has Bradley on its cover, will be donated to a fund in aid of his family.
Rapturous applause welcomed the Sunderland fan who wore a shirt that read "Thank you SAFC and fans".
In the away end, Swansea fans donated money with the Welsh club adding that Â£1 would also be donated to the fund for every food voucher its fans redeem.
In April, it was confirmed the latest and final round of Bradley's treatment had failed and the family vowed to continue "creating memories".
His mother, Gemma Lowery, said on Facebook on Thursday that the "disease is progressing".
A banner, flown over the Stadium of Light during the first half of the game, which said "United by Cancer - Divided by Leagues" was an attempt at solidarity from local rival football fans from Newcastle.
However, TV presenter and Newcastle United fan Lynsey Hipgrave wrote on Twitter that the banner was "totally distasteful and embarrassing".
But, Mrs Lowery responded to the plans on Facebook and said the banner was "very thoughtful that people to wanted to raise awareness".
Sunderland were relegated in April following 10 years in the top-flight, after they lost 1-0 to Bournemouth.
Local rivals Newcastle United won the Championship on Sunday and have been promoted to the Premier League.


Publisher Johnston Press has posted a fall in full-year revenues, as "Brexit-related uncertainties" outweighed a slight recovery in year-end sales.

The group, whose titles include The Scotsman and The Yorkshire Post, said revenues for the year to 31 December fell 6%.
It followed a period of "difficult trading" after the EU referendum, when revenue dropped 5%.
However, overall revenue rose 1% during the final three months of the year.
The Edinburgh-based publisher attributed the improvement in part to "strategic initiatives" implemented during the first half.
Over the year, digital advertising revenues - excluding classifieds - rose by 1%.
However, that increase failed to offset a drop in print advertising, which sent total advertising revenues lower by 7%.
Full-year circulation revenues rose 11%, bolstered by growing pick-up of the i newspaper, which has increased its market share from 17% to about 20% since being acquired by Johnston Press last year.
When excluding the i, circulation revenues fell 9%.
Chief executive Ashley Highfield said: "Despite the challenging print market, including a very difficult summer prompted by Brexit-related uncertainties, we have seen some improvement in our markets during the fourth quarter."
However, the company is expecting further headwinds as the industry continues to grapple with falling advertising revenues and print circulation.
The post-referendum collapse of the pound has also increased the cost of imported paper and ink, piling price pressure on publishers.
Sterling has fallen nearly 18% against the US dollar and about 10% against the euro since the Brexit vote.
Mr Highfield said: "Whilst we expect the overall market environment to remain challenging for both the group and the industry as a whole, we remain focused on delivering on our strategic priorities of growing our overall audience, driving the further success of the i newspaper, delivering a more efficient editorial and sales operation and strengthening the balance sheet."


Former Cardiff City boss Malky Mackay and head of recruitment Iain Moody will face no action over allegations they shared racist and sexist texts.

The Football Association said it had carried out a "thorough" investigation into the language used in the messages.
It found "the communications were sent with a legitimate expectation of privacy".
But both men have been spoken to "about the inappropriateness of terms used in the messages".
The FA added in a statement: "To date, the FA's policy in cases such as this has been to not bring charges in respect of private communications sent with a legitimate expectation of privacy."
In the 11-month investigation, 27 witnesses were spoken to by the FA, which said the process was delayed by "serious concerns" over "the circumstances in which particular evidence provided to the FA had been given".
"The nature of these concerns, which the FA treats with the utmost seriousness, has necessitated significant further inquiries by the FA and the liaison with external law enforcement agencies," it said.
The board of Cardiff City will discuss the FA ruling at a scheduled meeting on Friday.
A senior club official told BBC Wales: "We will not make a statement until we have considered the matter fully."
However, chairman Mehmet Dalman said the decision was a "massive setback for football in Britain in this day and age".
Dalman told Sky Sports: "We did not ask for a life ban or anything like that, but they (Football Association) should have made it clear what they did was wrong."
Anti-discrimination group Kick It Out was critical of the decision, as was Women in Football and the Jewish Leadership Council.
Kick It Out chairman Lord Ouseley told BBC Radio 5 live: "The issue here is not now about Malky Mackay and Iain Moody, it's about the principle of where does the FA stand on these issues, along with the rest involved in football?
"There is no standard when it comes to flushing out discrimination at the top end in football."
Mackay, 43, was sacked as Bluebirds boss in December 2013 when they were just outside the Premier League relegation zone.
The following August, Cardiff alleged Mackay sent "sexist, racist and homophobic" text messages during his time as their manager. Similar claims were also made against Moody, who had been dismissed by the club for an alleged £15m transfer overspend, which he denied.
Moody left his post as Crystal Palace sporting director shortly after the allegations were made.
Mackay admitted sending offensive messages and apologised, adding he was not racist, sexist, homophobic or anti-Semitic.
He was appointed Wigan Athletic manager in November 2014, despite the club being urged to reconsider by campaigners who cited the FA investigation into the text messages.
Mackay was sacked by Wigan in April following a string of poor results. Just a month earlier, Cardiff said they had submitted more evidence to the FA related to the text inquiry.
The FA's ruling comes after Blackpool chairman Karl Oyston was given a six-week ban from all football activity and fined £40,000 for a text-message exchange with a fan.
Oyston, though, admitted a misconduct charge after referring to a supporter as "a retard".
The FA said it was "determined to eliminate discriminatory conduct in all its forms" and will now look to introduce a policy governing behaviour in private.
It added: "The FA is in the process of carrying out a complex review involving all stakeholders on how communications, and in particular those involving discriminatory language, which may be viewed as taking place in private should be treated in the future."
Kick It Out said the FA's promise to review its policy was "lamentably late in the day".
The organisation added in a statement: "The FA has damaged its own credibility and anti-discrimination policies by taking the decision not to charge Malky Mackay and Iain Moody.
"The FA needed to take a strong position to help prove football's 'zero-tolerance' approach towards discriminatory practices. Instead, we have another example of the status quo being reinforced, and discriminatory practices being allowed to flourish in 'no-go' areas such as within the exclusivity of boardrooms, training grounds and dressing rooms, and via private communication networks.
"How can anybody truly challenge discrimination and prejudiced attitudes in football with confidence now? The apparent reluctance to punish comments and behaviour considered as 'banter' or 'light-hearted culture' within these settings is entirely damaging."
Simon Johnson, chief executive of the Jewish Leadership Council, said the decision "seems at odds" with FA action over former Wigan chairman Dave Whelan's racist comments - made in defence Mackay's appointment as Wigan manager - and Liverpool striker Mario Balotelli who posted an offensive picture on Instagram.
A Women in Football (Wif) statement also called for the FA to "bring it policies into line with other sectors". It said: "Wif believe that privately discriminating against those with protected characteristics is no less dangerous than publicly doing so."


Northern Ireland Water has been convicted of causing water pollution at Mallusk, County Antrim.

It was fined £1,000 for the incident at a waste water pumping station on Blackwater Road. NI Water was also given a £15 offenders' levy.
Belfast Magistrates' Court heard that a water quality inspector attended an incident affecting the Ballymartin Water on 24 August 2015.
The following day, they returned to continue their investigation.
In a statement made under caution, NI Water said "a discharge occurred as a result of a failure of the second of two pumps at Hydepark number two waste water pumping station on 23 August 2015".
The Northern Ireland Environment Agency's investigation found that a second standby pump had not been available at the pumping station for a number of weeks prior to the incident.
If available, the second standby pump would have come into operation following the failure of the duty pump "thereby preventing discharge from the station".
This situation contravened the conditions of a Water (NI) Order 1999 Consent to Discharge issued by the department in respect of the installation.


A young woman who had taken slimming drug DNP died after an "overwhelmed" hospital department failed to spot the "potentially fatal overdose".

Bethany Shipsey, 21, was being treated at Worcestershire Royal Hospital when there were delays recognising her condition, a report has found.
Her father, Doug Shipsey, said he had warned a nurse how serious the diet pill was.
The NHS Trust said it would not comment until after Miss Shipsey's inquest.
A five-day hearing is due to take place from 8 January.
More updates on this and other stories for Herefordshire and Worcestershire
Miss Shipsey had a history of mental health issues and had taken overdoses previously, her family said. A man has been convicted of raping her.
On 13 February, while a patient in the hospital's Elgar mental health unit, she was found with DNP, which was confiscated.
Two days later while visiting her family at home, she told a friend on social media she had taken the drug, which her parents believe she had in supply after buying it online.
An ambulance was called and Miss Shipsey told paramedics she had taken 30 tablets, though her family said she was prone to exaggeration.
Her father said he warned nurses about the DNP and after a delay, his daughter was put in the resuscitation room.
However, she was later moved because other patients were considered more seriously ill, he added.
Her mother, Carole Shipsey, who is a nurse, said she could not believe the lack of care she had witnessed.
She told staff her daughter was having a respiratory arrest.  A tracheotomy was performed to try to get her breathing, but it was too late, she said.
Mr Shipsey believes the overdose was a cry for help and not a genuine attempt to kill herself.
A forensic toxicology report recorded a level of 8 milligrams of DNP per litre. Deaths have been recorded at 28-99 mg/litre.
Worcestershire Acute Trust carried out an internal report into Miss Shipsey's death, which it shared with her family and has been seen by the BBC.
It said "an overwhelmed department led to a delay in recognition of a potentially fatal overdose and delayed implementation of cooling measures" - a treatment used in DNP overdoses.
In its internal report, the trust said it believed Miss Shipsey's death was inevitable.
Another report, a so-called root cause analysis, concluded there had been a "system failure".
Miss Shipsey died just weeks after the Care Quality Commission issued the trust, which has been in special measures since 2015, with a warning notice ordering it to make significant improvements.
Concerns raised related to all three main hospital sites - Worcester Royal, Kidderminster and the Alexandra Hospital in Redditch - and focused on patient safety, compliance and governance.


Usain Bolt won his third gold medal of the 2012 Olympics as he anchored Jamaica's sprint relay team to a sensational world record.

Jamaica's quartet clocked 36.84 seconds, smashing the old mark by two-tenths of a second and leaving the United States with silver.
Nesta Carter and Michael Frater produced excellent first and second legs but it was 100m and 200m silver medallist Yohan Blake's blistering third leg that set the platform.
Bolt provided the perfect finale - exploding away to leave Ryan Bailey trailing as the capacity crowd stood to acclaim him.
Canada were initially given bronze before being disqualified when third-leg runner Jared Connaughton stepped outside of his lane, meaning Trinidad and Tobago were promoted to third place.
After winning the  and  in Beijing 2008 and London 2012, plus the 4x100m relay, the latest gold means Bolt now has six Olympic golds before his 26th birthday.
"It was electric. The atmosphere in the stadium was electric and it was all because of this race. The big difference was when Blake received the baton he tore around the bend - and he was up against Tyson Gay! Usain Bolt was watching that clock all the way down the home straight."
It was a fitting way to conclude a wonderful nine days of athletics in the Olympic Stadium.
Bolt said London 2012 had been "amazing" and on the race added: "It's a wonderful feeling to end on a high note. It was a great championships, I'm happy, the team came out and gave it their all, I wish we could have gone faster but we leave room for improvement."
He said he did not know if he would be aiming for a third treble gold haul in Rio 2016: "It's going to be hard. Yohan is running hard and I'm sure there's going to be more young cats coming up."
Usain Bolt celebrated with a "Mobot" as he crossed the line, paying tribute to Britain's 5,000m and 10,000m double Olympic champion, Mo Farah.