General Election 2015

Click on the icon to follow HRreview’s election coverage

The UK’s political party members are unemployable, according to research released today by Crunch Accounting.

When asked which party leader they would hire to work for them 27 percent of 500 freelancers and microbusinesses across the UK said that they wouldn’t choose any of the candidates.

Darren Fell MD of Crunch Accounting, the company that conducted the survey, said:

“With the election just a few days away, politicians would do well to take notice of these results. Whether they’re up to the job or not, they are clearly not coming across as credible to the small business and freelance community and that should be of huge concern to them.

“As an online accountancy firm we deal with the needs of thousands of freelancers and small business owners on a daily basis, and the message that comes through loud and clear is that politicians need to pay more attention to their needs.”

Among those that would employ a political leader, David Cameron was the most popular choice with 22 percent, followed by Ed Miliband with 13 percent. Nicola Sturgeon came third place with 12 percent and 11 percent said they would hire Nick Clegg.

The remaining candidates would have very little chance at securing a job with the respondent’s companies. Fewer than one in 10 said they would hire Nigel Farage, the Green Party’s Natalie Bennett was only favoured by four percent and just 2 percent chose leader of Plaid Cymru, Leanne Wood.

The survey also asked business decision makes which party best understands the needs of SMEs and the self-employed. The Conservatives took the lead with a third of votes (32%), while Labour took a quarter (25%). Around a fifth (18%) felt none of the parties understood their needs, while one in 10 said the Liberal Democrats had their best interests at heart.

[poll id=”298″]

Title image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

 

 

 

 

Steff joined the HRreview editorial team in November 2014. A former event coordinator and manager, Steff has spent several years working in online journalism. She is a graduate of Middlessex University with a BA in Television Production and will complete a Master's degree in Journalism from the University of Westminster in the summer of 2015.