The job's in front of them

Incoming governments are like the person with the wheelbarrow.

They have the job in front of them. What to do?

They can only use levers that governments control directly.

On other stuff, they can talk and wring their hands. As we've seen, they do this a lot.

Getting the horse before the cart, what policy objectives should they aim for?

On law and order, stop domestic disobedience and violence. Improve domestic safety.

Stop bleating about 'cost of living'. Do something. Stop unreliables pushing up power prices.

Stop the boats and refugee tourist flights. Be up-front about what they're actually doing.

Ensure domestic policy promotes higher living standards. Plenty to do here. Examples:

Labour market

Above all, try to ensure all those wanting to work are employed, and working the hours they want to work. That means promoting a wage-flexible labour market. There's nothing so unproductive as an unemployed person wanting work. Economy-wide, living standards depend on this.

In a post-pandemic world, as supply chain restrictions dissipate, a wage-flexible labour market will become paramount. We only have two real-world choices. We can ensure wages are flexible. Or we must accept employment will be flexible.

The former supports higher overall employment and overall living standards.