The Democratic Unionist Party, according to its deputy leader Nigel Dodds, “does not abstain on the union”. Amid the theatre and grandstanding in the House of Commons last week, this was one statement that had the ring of integrity and certitude. The DUP never sits on the fence.

As the UK approaches the witching hour in its attempt to leave the European Union, its political parties are falling apart. The Conservatives are destined to split, regardless of the outcome of Brexit. Labour is engulfed in a civil war between the 1980s and the real world. The Liberal Democrats are searching for a new leader. The Scottish Nationalists brood on the sidelines, biding their time, which will surely come.

Only the DUP still marches in formation,