Why I voted Conservative

Many, including myself, had hoped it would be a Conservative victory, but I don’t think it was anticipated it would be an outright majority win – rather hedging our bets on the strong possibility of a hung parliament once again.

It was interesting to see that the polls and commentators got it so wrong – it just goes to show you can only predict and speculate so much. What a remarkable turnaround. With Ed Miliband’s resignation and Ed Balls losing his seat, Labour will be licking their wounds in what has been one of the most dramatic General Elections for decades.

Yesterday, I wanted to ensure that my vote was for whom I truly believe will make difference to our society and our progressively recovering economy – with the recent positive employment figures from Office for National Statistics in mind and the progress Conservatives have already made, I formulated my decision based on this hard evidence. I am delighted at the prospect of Conservatives looking after our country for another five years. I have great faith in their plans and objectives, which will have a significant impact on UK SMEs and the wider employment landscape.

As a business owner and CEO of Brookfield Rose, parent group of 14 companies including recent start-ups Suits Me and Zoek, I am acutely aware of the challenges faced by entrepreneurs when it comes to securing finance and business support, and understand the headaches of regulation and late payments only too well.

With the number of people starting up businesses currently at record levels (more than half a million businesses were started last year, according to Federation of Small Businesses), small businesses are the lifeblood of our economy. The Conservatives have demonstrated their understanding of this, pledging their continued support in the weeks, months and years to come. I truly believe these developments will bring even more positive change to an economy and country that is getting increasingly stronger.

Finally, I was pleased to see Mayor of London Boris Johnson storm to victory in Uxbridge and South Ruislip to complete his return to the House of Commons, claiming a safe seat with a large majority of more than 10,000 votes.

All that leaves now is for former Liberal Democrat leader Paddy Ashdown to publically eat his hat but sadly he declined Andrew Neil’s offer, after he presented him with a fedora.

UK entrepreneur Matthew Sanders, CEO of Brookfield Rose (parent company of fourteen businesses including start-ups Zoek and Suits Me)