“I wish it need not have happened in my time”, said Frodo. “So do I”, said Gandalf, “and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time given to us.”- J.R.R Tolkien

It is almost two years since the Assembly fell. Two years without a Government. Two years of wondering who will budge first, and when. 

And so tomorrow marks another mundane hopeless Monday in the world of politics here in Northern Ireland.

As the fatigue with this impasse grows stronger, it almost makes ‘agreement’ seem like it must be round the corner, yet in all likelihood (according to most commentators and politicos) another year could pass before we see any sign of cracks in the deadlock. 

As we continue to sail down **** creek, rudderless, with no First or Deputy First captains, we should never forget about those not on the boat; those who need a life jacket thrown to them, those of whom time is truly of the essence:

  • Universal Credit claimants
  • Those facing redundancies
  • Principals managing unworkable school budgets
  • Patients on hospital waiting lists
  • Carers struggling on

(a very condensed list^^)

All the while they are being forgotten whilst the crew throw each other stale looks and pitiful insults.

Some will describe the situation as embarrassing. It is more than that, it is reprehensible.

There is nothing admirable about our political drift. No one is going down in history for it. No one. 

When the time comes, there will be no victors, just the same old faces around the same big oak table in Stormont Castle, accepting the reality that there is only one way to make this place work. 

The clock may have stopped ticking at Stormont, but it hasn’t stopped for anyone else.

Change is inevitable. The time has come for parties to see beyond themselves and their base.

It is time to be uncomfortable. It is time to be brave.