After huffing, puffing and refusing to participate in the upcoming BBC Party Leaders’ debate, David Cameron finally has his wish of the Green Party joining in on the action. With the Scottish and Welsh nationalist parties included too, ironically the most fervent defenders of the United Kingdom, the DUP – Westminster’s fourth biggest party – are without a place, as is Northern Ireland without any input whatsoever.

The fact that this debate has come to include seven party leaders as opposed to three demonstrates just how unpredictable, exciting, even dangerous British politics has become. Considering the fast pace of politics across the water, the exclusion of the DUP demonstrates just how little the party really has to contribute to British politics, economic policy and society more generally.

The essence of the Democratic Unionist Party is to keep Northern Ireland in the Union, yet its isolationist brand of nationalism has only brought us further adrift than ever. Recently finding itself balancing Stormont’s finances to avoid another Treasury bailout, forcing a move towards smaller government here has been out of necessity rather than ideology.

Beyond recognising that a State must live within its means, if the DUP espoused to more ideals than maintaining a united kingdom and looked towards reconciling Northern Ireland with the rest of these islands then it would have something significant to bring to the BBC debate.

Without a Northern Ireland-specific mud-slinging match on flags, parades or past conflict, it is difficult to imagine Peter Robinson credibly contributing to a discussion over what direction the UK should realistically be heading in the next five years.

Considering Sinn Féin do not take their seats at Westminster, the SDLP tend to take the Labour whip and the UUP would toe the Tory line if it were to elect an MP, had we a different context or narrative then what we could have hoped for was a moderate, progressive Christian Democratic party capable of challenging the Westminster elite on what values and policy approaches we should take into the 2020s.

Alas, until further notice we have nothing to contribute.