【明報專訊】PRIOR TO the nomination period of the upcoming Chief Executive election, Carrie Lam, one of the four major candidates, unveiled her policy proposals on three major areas, namely education, the economy and housing. She proposed a $5 billion increase of recurrent expenditure on education, a two-tier profits tax system to support small and medium enterprises, a comprehensive review of land supply, and the reinstatement of the housing ladder. While Carrie Lam's suggestions cannot be regarded as a complete platform, they do allow different sectors of society to compare different CE candidates' proposals on bread-and-butter and economic issues and contemplate how the next government should make good use of the fiscal surplus, which currently exceeds $917 billion. The relaunch of constitutional reform and Article 23 legislation have been the focus of discussion among some political parties and members of society recently. However, public opinion surveys suggest that citizens are most concerned about bread-and-butter issues. To fulfil citizens' expectation, the candidates should devote more time to the discussion of bread-and-butter issues.