Having expressed a somewhat cynical view ahead of the landmark UK general elections last week, I thought I’d offer some more sober comments this week.

The coalition government between the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats brings together the largest and third largest blocs within the new House of Commons, and will have a majority of 74. This is a good working majority for new Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron, and is larger than the 64-seat majority under Tony Blair in 2005 or John Major’s 21 in 1992. This is crucial because it will allow room for small-scale rebellions by unhappy MPs from either party, and will allow the Conservatives to secure passage for legislation upon which the Liberal Democrats wish to abstain. Put simply, this was the best and most cohesive deal which could be put together under the prevailing parliamentary arithmetic.

Turning to the joint programme, there is much both sides will like contained within it, with tax, spending, and social priorities all being effectively merged.

There are a couple of areas likely to lead to some friction over the medium term, though.

The first is the Conservative promise to hold a referendum on electoral reform, which is a Liberal Democrat pet project. Conservative activists are notably opposed, and even if Conservative MPs vote in favour of a national vote, the party may still campaign for a ‘No’ vote. This would likely cause tensions with their Lib Dem partners.

The second potential policy fault-line is over the replacement for the Trident nuclear weapons system. The Liberal Democrats wanted to scrap it, but the programme is in line with the Conservative policy to keep it. Given the cost, this could cause problems.

More detailed coverage of the durability of the new government can be found on Business Monitor Online.