The election is drawing near and things are hotting up in the decision making department as business owners scrutinise party policies in an effort to cast a vote that will yield entrepreneurial advantage. Understanding what the General Election means for UK energy policy is of particular significance as it will have a long term impact on business overheads but with politicians not exactly known for their candour, negotiating the vague strategy of party politics can be frustrating if nothing else.

In an effort to help business owners better understand party manifestos and what they will mean for energy using companies, the Association for Decentralised Energy has offered a review of the most prominent party policies. The bad news is that Despite loud concerns over the past two years from businesses on their growing energy costs, there is nothing from any of the parties’ manifestos that shows the importance of improving industrial and business energy productivity or managing their costs is on their radar, which the Association for Decentralised Energy is calling a “missed opportunity for all the major parties.” That said; there are yet some points that might affect the voting choice of UK entrepreneurs:

• Both Labour and the Liberal Democrat manifestos commit to energy efficiency as an infrastructure priority although there remains limited detail on the proposal.
• The Conservative manifesto focuses on the cost of energy but the party’spromise to remove relatively low-cost onshore wind subsidies risks undermining this claim.
• The Liberal Democrat manifesto reflects their experience gained in government and their aim to own the green energy file in comparison to the other main parties. As well as a poignant focus on energy, it is also the only manifesto to properly consider heat.
• The Scottish National Party (SNP), although understandably focused on Scotland, has a very strong focus on encouraging renewable electricity investment, due to the Scottish wind and tidal resource.

It’s definitely worth doing further research into any of the aforementioned points if they have the potential to sway your vote.

And if you’re a small business owner, listen up! Of particular interest in the upcoming General Election is the ballot to be cast by Britain’s small business community, which has grown by two million firms since the last election in 2010. According to the StartUp Britain tracker, for the last three years record numbers of people have been setting up in business. In just two years, more than a million new companies have been registered with Companies House, and one in 10 domestic properties in the UK is now home to at least one business – as reported by ibtimes.co.uk.

The ultimate point is this: no matter how small or big your company, energy is an issue and it is important to consider what the people who plan to run the country might offer your business when it comes to entrepreneurial advancement – not only in relation to the overall goal of cutting costs but in terms of energy efficiency and ethical policy as well.

If you’d like further information, feel free to contact the CH Systems team on 0208 302 8149 or info@chsystems.cc.

Sources: Theade.co.uk – “Better Energy Blog | What the General Election Means for UK Energy Policy” and Ibtimes.co.uk – “Election 2015: Cameron and Miliband can gain huge advantage by winning small business favour”