Tribute must be paid to people here and in Northern Ireland following the extraordinary agreement reached yesterday between the two largest parties. However, one of the sad results of yesterday’s agreement is that many of the moderates have been sidelined. Whereas the extremists may have been moderated, those who have been responsible for the process have found that their parties have been marginalised.

I refer specifically to the Ulster Unionist Party and SDLP, which were, to a large extent, the creators of the agreement but have, to some extent, been made redundant. This is a pity, although the price is well worth paying. Nevertheless, we should not forgot those who built this amazing historic agreement.