The first anniversary today of the Stormont Assembly’s resumption of business, after a two-year gap, is hardly a matter for widespread celebrations but we can at least be satisfied that our devolved structures remain in place.
While expectations may still be modest, it deserves to be acknowledged that Executive members were able to work together constructively over the past week on the wider response to the crisis caused by Storm Éowyn.
The winds were the highest recorded in the region for almost three decades, leaving a trail of devastation in their wake, and, at the worst stage, more than 30 per cent of premises were without power.
It was essential that all the Stormont departments played a full role as the scale of the damage became clear, and the leadership displayed by the first and deputy first ministers, Michelle O’Neill and Emma Little-Pengelly, plainly made a difference.
There will be disappointment that so many customers remained without electricity for so long, and there is continuing uncertainty about the possibility of compensation, but keeping the issue at the top of the political agenda can only help.
It would be premature to assess progress on the executive’s programme for government (PfG), which was announced last September and specifically designed to cover a period ending in 2027, but it is fair to suggest that the measures it contained ranged between the limited and the aspirational.
The fact that the most recent PfG previously went out for public consultation in 2016, but was never taken to the next stage after the resignation of the late Martin McGuinness of Sinn Féin as deputy first minister, may explain why the bar was set so low, as the last initiative of this kind to be properly implemented was an embarrassing 14 years ago.
It will generally be concluded that solid and significant achievements since powers were first devolved to Stormont in December 1999, just over a quarter of a century ago, have been the exception rather than the rule.
All the upheavals and walk-outs of the period have plainly restricted the options available to MLAs but we have reached a stage where simply maintaining the institutions can no longer be regarded as an achievement and delivery is absolutely crucial.
It is verging on the bizarre that some voices on the fringes of unionism are demanding another suspension, a development which could only focus further attention on the timescale for a border poll.
Both traditions, as well as the unaligned, can pursue their constitutional ambitions separately, but the opportunity to improve the lives of ordinary citizens on all sides is a priority within the grasp of our Stormont representatives.
