What happened at Westminster on Tuesday was nothing less than an historic day for Northern Ireland.

By advancing legislative moves towards both same-sex marriage and abortion reform, MPs gave a marker which could bring this society in line with both the UK and the Republic of Ireland. What was also clear from the speeches delivered in the Commons chamber, particularly from the likes of Tory MPs Huw Merriman and Vicky Ford, is that Westminster’s patience with Stormont is waning. And there are now signs that direct rule is very much on the table. It will be just one more thing for Britain’s new Prime Minister to wrestle with in the coming weeks.

The two amendments, put forward by Labour MPs Conor McGinn and Stella Creasy, specify that secondary legislation be implemented to extend same-sex marriage and abortion reform respectively to Northern Ireland “unless an executive is formed by 21 October 2019.” The amendments passed overwhelmingly, by 383-73, and then by 332-99.

During the debate, the DUP argued passionately that if Westminster took charge of these devolved matters they would be stripping the legitimacy away from Northern Ireland’s devolved assembly. But it is an argument that is fundamentally weak considering the absence of that assembly for more than two years now.

Yet ironically this outcome could play well for the DUP when rallying its base. It could make the case that if they do not get back to Stormont more decisions like these will be taken in Westminster. Tuesday has taken the pressure off the party trying to stop the marriage equality and abortion campaigns and possibly offers a way forward to develop a workable framework on the Irish language issue which could be approved by both the DUP and Sinn Féin.

Sinn Féin, meanwhile, has been placed in a difficult position given its mantra of ‘equality, respect and integrity’ since if it were to find agreement and restore Stormont before the October deadline, it would once again be denying that equality to the LGBTQ+ community in Northern Ireland. As we have seen during the talks process and when the text draft agreement was published last year, there was no mention of same sex marriage being brought forward within a restored Stormont, only issues surrounding the Irish language

But it is clear now that this could turn out to be a win-win for both parties down the line, even at the cost of Northern Ireland marching on without having a functioning Stormont, at least in the short term.  Equal marriage and abortion law reform can be implemented, leaving the ‘bread and butter’ politics the parties are most comfortable with, on issues surrounding identity, culture and language.

When it comes to human rights and devolved matters, Northern Ireland has a lot more work to do. But what Tuesday demonstrated is that citizens here have other voices advocating for them that are not the DUP in Westminster; and deep thanks are due to Conor McGinn, Stella Creasy and Dominic Grieve.

Furthermore, the largely unspoken winner out of this will be the Alliance Party, which has held a consistent message on both these issues. Building on their recent success at the council and EU elections, it will be able to stand on that record and reinforce its claim to the mantle of Northern Ireland’s middle ground, speaking for people who have been clearly stepping away from traditional political blocs. The danger with all of this is when will be the right time for Stormont to return and how much people may have lost faith in local governance. Tuesday at Westminster went a long way to suggesting that there are ways to ensure that the people’s voices are heard.

But what must not be forgotten when looking to the future is just how big an achievement this is and the debt of thanks this society owes to the activists and campaigners who have fought hard for marriage equality and of course our beautiful, powerful and resilient LGBTQ+ community. And furthermore, to our women who have spent years arguing, making the case and lobbying for abortion reform in Northern Ireland. You have always been the best of us and you always will be the best of us.

Twitter, as you might expect, reacted joyously:

And, finally…