So we have a new government: the Starmer government.
But there is still a lot of negativity around.
False presumptions
There is a tendency among people to assume that:
Your son lies in his room all day and his friends seem to be lazy slackers, so all young people are lazy and useless. Your job puts you in contact with terrible landlords, who charge terrible landlords a lot of money and threaten eviction in retaliation if the tenant complains, so all landlords must be charging exorbitant fees and refusing to comply with their legal obligations. Many millionaires and billionaires are selfish, self-centered con artists who are more focused on transferring their ill-gotten gains to places where taxes are lowest than contributing to society, so all millionaires and billionaires must be like that.
And for those of us who have lived through 14 years of austerity, sleaze and poor governance under the Troy government, this means that all politicians are sneaky opportunity seekers only interested in what they can get, and indifferent to the suffering of the working class.
But this is wrong
As always, there are lazy young people, but the majority are hard-working, decent people. There are bad and criminal landlords, but there are also many who work hard to provide their tenants with decent housing and who care deeply about their tenants' welfare. Indeed, some millionaires and billionaires are busy fleeing the UK because they fear they may be asked to pay more tax. But there are also those who are actually asking to pay more tax.
You can't judge everyone by the actions of a few.
So what about politicians?
In opinion poll after opinion poll, we see “ordinary people” saying that they no longer trust politicians, that they are “all the same”, that they make promises they don't keep, that they are “selfish”.
But as with young people, landlords and the super-rich, this is not true of all politicians – although after 14 years of Conservative government it is understandable that many feel this way.
But call me a fool, but I believe Keir Starmer and his Cabinet are different.
For one thing, none of them went to Eton and many, like Angela Rayner, Bridget Phillipson, Wes Streeting and Keir Starmer himself, came from poor working-class families.
Their life experiences are very similar to ours.
What about Sir Keir?
Unlike most of his Conservative predecessors, he was not privately educated (David Cameron and Boris Johnson both went to Eton) but attended his local grammar school, which was based on his over-11 exam results and was not funded by his parents.
He received his first degree from the University of Leeds, not Oxford.
What about his work history?
He was a leading civil rights lawyer who chose to “help people” rather than make a lot of money. He acted “pro bono” (legal slang for “free”) in suitable cases, notably the McDonald libel case, and defended prisoners on death row. He was an adviser to the Northern Ireland Police Commission (which was a major influence on his decision to go into politics) and knows Northern Irish politics inside out. He was Director of Public Prosecutions for five years, gaining experience of running a large government department.
Wouldn't that be better preparation for a government job than being a journalist or a hedge fund manager?
I therefore do not agree that our media is welcoming the birth of a Labour government with excessive caution.
I think Keir Starmer is exactly the man we need and (frankly) we are incredibly lucky to have him.
So is Rachel Reeves. It's about time we had a female Finance Minister.
She, too, is a trained economist who previously worked at the Bank of England and has the right background for the job.
Hope for the future
Starmer's government has a huge majority and should remain in power for at least five years, which would usher in a welcome period of stability.
I believe that Keir Starmer and his team, with their track record of service rather than self-interest, can (eventually, and no doubt with difficulty) steer the country out of the current stormy seas and into calmer waters of fairness and prosperity.
If they continue in the right direction, their long-term future looks very bright.
As another of Keir Starmer's optimists, Andrew Marr, puts it, looking around the world, the UK, with a relatively centrist government, would look like a relatively safe haven for investment – meaning the “wall of money” might be coming our way.
This is the Landlord Law Blog.
What about the private rented sector?
Landlords are very afraid that this government will be too harsh on them, and because of this fear many have already sold their homes.
But Sir Keir will know how important the private rented sector is. We really need it. If lots of landlords leave, it will have a negative impact on tenants. He wouldn't want that.
The thing we should fear most is not landlords who deal fairly with their tenants, but those who are unscrupulous and commit criminal acts.
And if the government delivers more growth as promised, rent arrears should fall.
And finally
I believe that in 10 to 15 years' time, a Starmer government will have significantly improved the public's view of politicians, and that the public will once again be entrusting their future to a Conservative government.
Provided, of course, that the Conservatives have in the meantime proven themselves worthy of high office.