It was fantastic to meet with business leaders from across Surrey for the business forum meeting I held with my neighbouring constituency Parliamentary Candidate, Rebecca Paul.
Both Rebecca and I answered six main questions that came from our Business Survey which is still available to complete.
These were:
- 1. Addressing Financial Pressures:
- "Given that a significant portion of Surrey businesses are challenged by high taxes and energy bills, what specific legislative measures can you propose or support to alleviate these financial burdens?"
- 2. Enhancing Customer Spending Power:
- "How do you plan to address the cost of living to boost consumer spending, which in turn could help local businesses attract and win more customers?"
- 3. Support for Technology and Digital Competitiveness:
- "40% of survey respondents feel they don't have sufficient technology to compete effectively. What initiatives can be introduced to support small businesses in enhancing their digital capabilities?"
- 4. Improving Skills and Education:
- "With 40% of businesses reporting that applicants lack essential skills, what strategies can be implemented to improve the skill sets of potential employees, particularly in fundamental areas like maths and writing?"
- 5. Accessing Funding Opportunities:
- "Considering that 100% of the surveyed businesses reported no resource for applying for funding opportunities, can you outline plans to provide or improve access to these resources?"
- 6. Local Council Support and Engagement:
- "Local council support for businesses was not rated highly in the survey. How do you propose to improve this relationship and ensure businesses feel supported by their local council?"
The meeting was recorded, so you can see for yourself how Rebecca and I answered the questions, as well as some that were put to us by some of the participants.
A huge thank you to all those who attended. Rebecca and I thought the meeting was so successful that we decided to do another event soon on housing. Subscribe to my eNewsletter to be the first to hear about details here.
