Under what seems to be a confidence and supply arrangement, the PPP will vote with the PML-N only on motions of confidence and spending bills. For all else, the PML-N may be on its own.

Meanwhile, in its new incarnation as the Sunni Ittehad Council — and likely to emerge as the single largest party in the Lower House barring any further engineering — the PTI will sit on the opposition benches and is poised to take the opposition leader’s slot.

With legislative power thus distributed, this government will likely prove to be the most formidable political test faced yet by Shehbaz, who ruled without any real opposition the last time around. And it won’t just be parliament that will be testing his mettle.

Does Shehbaz expect to deliver in such circumstances? His biggest task will be to clean out the Augean stables left behind by his own administration, especially where the economy is concerned.

Read the full editorial here.