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The launch today of a new unionist movement by Jim Allister, the MEP, will have been long awaited by close followers of the politics of Northern Ireland.
Mr Allister hopes to crystallise concern among unionist voters at what he sees as the premature union in government between the unionist parties, particularly his former colleagues in the DUP, and Sinn Fein.
The republican party, he maintains, are unrepentant terrorists, and Ian Paisley and the DUP have sold out on their unionist principals to share power with them.
Doubtless, the sight of Ian Paisley and Martin McGuinness "joined at the hip", as Mr Allister would say, is a sight many here and around the world thought they would never see.
Despite concerns about fault-lines in the political foundations at Stormont, particularly the lack of an effective opposition, this newspaper has been a vigorous supporter of power-sharing a la the Good Friday and St Andrews agreements. It was an imperfect but necessary fix to lead us out of the wilderness.
However, Mr Allister's new movement, which could soon pledge to fight elections, is a welcome development. Anything that gives democratic political voice to a constituency that feels neglected or unrepresented is a positive advance.
Whether it will gain widespread support, however, is another matter altogether.
