Tom Richmond: Cameron & Co don't need to deliver the impossible: simplicity will suffice

Inevitably, this new dawn, the first coalition government for 70 years, will focus on the symbolism of David Cameron and Nick Clegg – recent rivals – sitting together on the front bench.

Their legislative programme, an 18-month package containing 21 legislative Bills, will also be compared to New Labour's first reform agenda in 1997 and Cool Britannia's false faade.

Yet, while Cameron and Clegg will want to show that they are men of change, leaders who can respond to the unique challenges facing the country, they need to spend the next year concentrating on four key areas – the economy, a need for efficient government, the reform of Parliament and those long-term issues that Labour simply ignored.

Not only are they the most critical issues facing the country, but they also provide the best opportunity for the coalition to find its feet and prove that it can govern responsibly over the next five years.

It's not the quantity of legislation that matters – but the quality of the new laws and decision-making. Cameron and Co need to remember this.

Of course, this Parliament will be defined by the unprecedented spending cuts that will be required after Labour's 13 years of fiscal irresponsibility.

This was epitomised by the note that outgoing Treasury minister Liam Byrne left his Lib Dem successor David Laws: "Dear Chief Secretary. I'm afraid to tell you there's no money left. Kind regards and good luck."

Already, 6bn of cuts have been identified. The real pain is still to come. And the bankers have yet to be brought to book. But, while the Government inevitably turns its attention to tax-raising proposals, it needs to remember that a flourishing private sector is the most effective way of raising revenue – and seeing parts of the country, Barnsley and Hull are prime examples, becoming less state-dependent.

Encouraging private enterprise to flourish has to be a priority – an approach to business which has been afforded insufficient attention thus far.

However, this also requires a fundamental reappraisal of how every aspect of government operates. Instead of money

being thrown irresponsibly at problems, every public sector manager needs to be challenged to use existing resources more efficiently.

New ways of working need to be established. A recruitment freeze needs to be imposed across the public sector – unless the post involves a key staff member like a teacher, nurse or policeman, for example. It's the only way to reduce costs, and the pensions black hole, and Chancellor George Osborne, to his credit, recognised this yesterday.

Equally, the lessons from last week's National Fraud Initiative need to be introduced. It exposed spending loopholes and scams across the public sector – like the Yorkshire Ambulance NHS Trust staff member who was paid more than 190,000, even though the employee had no right to work in the UK. These must be closed.

Every aspect of central and local government needs to be examined to see how money can be better spent in the future – that is far more important than legislation that tinkers around the edges. A culture of efficiency needs to become endemic.

And, if politicians struggle to identify sufficient money-saving ideas, then they should ask the frontline staff – invariably these are the people with the best ideas and who know, from years of experience, how services can be provided more efficiently and cost-effectively.

This rigorous approach might help counter the notion that the Government's first priority will be to raise tax – and, specifically, capital gains tax and VAT. While both may be necessary, they are regrettable. The former penalises responsible savers, while the latter will particularly hit poorer members of society.

What is needed is a tripartite approach – higher taxes where appropriate, lower taxes for hardworking families and wide-ranging efficiency savings .

There is no reason this cannot take place while Parliament reforms itself – not only over the lingering fallout from last year's expenses scandal but the way that it operates.

Britain would not be in such a mess if New Labour, with typical arrogance, had not been

allowed to undermine

established forms of decision-making and scrutiny.

An MP's job is two-fold – to represent their constituents and to hold the Government to account. Instead, many MPs fall into two categories – political cheerleaders or glorified social workers. This needs re-appraising.

And so, too, do many issues that have been allowed to fester – the poor performance of primary schools, pensions policy, transport investment and Britain's looming energy crisis.

The initial temptation of Ministers will be to seek quick fixes. Yet they need to proceed

with caution. The country does not want policy upheaval to

justify the Government's

existence. It wants better policies. And, if that means waiting for legislation to be carefully put together, then it will be a price worth paying – if it means that

the new laws will be sustainable in the longer-term and that Britain has a revitalised Parliament, including a fully-elected House

of Lords.

Today's State Opening provides David Cameron and Nick Clegg with a historic opportunity to

roll out their programme of compassionate Conservatism, with a leaner and more efficient State at its core.

Yet, conversely, they should not undertake to deliver the impossible. Simplicity will suffice, if this is what it takes to start clearing up the policy and economic mess bequeathed to them after Gordon Brown tried – and failed – to spend his way out of political trouble.

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