Survey: Small business is split between Labour and the Tories

A new nationwide survey from 1st Formations found that the UK’s small business vote is split almost fifty-fifty between Labour and the Conservatives.

The general election is fast approaching, with the two main parties battling it out over the economy – more than usual. According to the latest polls, the 2024 election is Labour’s to lose and could very well see the ‘electoral extinction’ of Rishi Sunak’s Conservative Party, as recently reported by Reuters.

And yet, when it comes to small business in the UK, the picture looks very different, according to the 1st Formations 2024 Election Survey, which recently asked thousands of small businesses across the UK the following question: Of the two main political parties, which would be better for your business?

With 800 responses, the survey found that 51% of small business owners think The Conservative Party is better for business, compared to 49% for Labour.

“Given that the Conservatives have historically been seen as the party of business, it is no surprise they are still ahead of Labour, albeit marginally with 51%,” says Graeme Donnelly, CEO and founder of 1st Formations, the largest company formation agent in the UK. “The fact that Labour is up to 49% shows how far that party has come since the Jeremy Corbyn era.”

Small business in the UK is often understated or overlooked by politicians, despite there being 5.5 million companies of that size (with 0 to 49 employees). In fact, the latest figures from The Federation of Small Businesses show that small business accounts for nearly three-fifths of the employment, and over a third of national turnover in the UK private sector; in other words: 13.1 million people and estimated turnover of £1.6tn.

Small business feels sidelined by Westminster

To better understand the political priorities and needs of small business across the UK, the 1st Formations 2024 Election Survey asked owners a wide-ranging series of questions, such as: Do you think the UK government puts the interests of big business over SMEs? To this, 66% of the 800 respondents said ‘yes’, while 10% said ‘no’. The remainder said ‘unsure’.

The survey also asked owners: Has your business experienced a positive or negative impact from Brexit? 42% of respondents said ‘negative’, versus 9% saying ‘positive’. The remainder said ‘neither’.

Meanwhile, when asked: Are you experiencing a labour or skills shortage in your sector? 62% said ‘no’ while 38% said ‘yes’. Those who responded ‘yes’ were subsequently posed the following question: Is your business suffering from a lack of skilled workers from the EU? 58% said ‘yes’ and 42% said ‘no’.

In terms of methodology, 1st Formations sent its survey in early June to tens of thousands of small businesses across its customer base. Of the 800 that responded, the majority worked in the following industries: tech, e-commerce, finance, education, construction, hospitality, property, and retail.