Trying to come up with a list of positives about our elected representatives at the moment is a bit like trying to think of the best things about going back to work after a fortnight’s holiday.
It’s not easy I know, but in the same way the prospect of not having to apply sun cream before you step out the door on your first day back offers up a crumb of comfort to a depressingly glum situation, so there are small positives to be taken from our lot on the hill.
Not that they’re here to listen to what is going to be rare praise given they’re currently not sitting at the moment owing to an inability to kiss and make up and a penchant for standing under that plastic drizzle guard lamenting the other side’s obstinance to the press after walking away from talks for the umpteenth time.
Nor would they be within hearing distance were they not bickering because this is the traditional summer break period and you’d more likely to find them applying that sun cream in Torremolinos, a thought which is unlikely to leave you for the rest of the day.
But we digress, again.
The reason you should give them a pat on the back is the fact they did nothing.
“Harumph,” I hear you cry, “Nothing less than I expected.”
To be more precise, they did nothing when, in 2013, then Lord Chancellor Chris Grayling introduced a charge for employees who took their employers to a tribunal.
Now, you may think that is a fairly boring piece of legislation which doesn’t deserve your attention but it has been making the headlines all week.
That’s because it was overturned by none other than the Supreme Court which said the fees – which amounted from £400 up to £1,200 per claimant – were unjustified.
It resulted in a sharp drop in the number of employees taking action against their employers in cases of unfair dismissal, discrimination and the like.
Essentially, it was a shot in the arm for big business and a shot in the nether regions for the worker.
Cue much rejoicing from unions across England as the power balance shifted ever-so slightly back again.
Not so here in Northern Ireland because Stormont decided not to introduce the fee in a rare feat of common sense.
But there could be some knock on effects for Northern Ireland companies with big operations in GB.
That’s because the Supreme Court is forcing the government to repay any fees paid by employees during the last four years so any business involved may have to trawl through past cases.
The rest of us can be thankful our politicians saw sense and didn’t blindly follow Westminster’s lead, leaving employees with an easier path to stand up to discrimination.
The big question now will be whether such divergence would happen now that we’re a little more beholden to the decisions of a Tory government given its £1bn stipend.
Time will tell.