Speaking with Angels

Entrepreneurs from across the Wessex region are continuing to contact a Southbourne businesswoman who questioned government minister Vince Cable about his credibility to advise microbusiness owners.

Samantha Acton has attracted
lots of support for her efforts to make
Vince Cable pay attention to the
smallest businesses

Samantha Acton, who runs Domestic Angels home help service, tackled the business secretary over his lack of experience of running a business with fewer than five employees.

“Microbusinesses account for 95 per cent of the businesses in Dorset and yet government ministers and the people that run business organisations have little or no actual experience of them,” says Samantha.

“Dr Cable didn’t try to hide that fact, but then reverted to a pat answer about approaching banks for funding and cutting red tape.

“If he bothered to find out about what it’s really like to run a business at this level he would be trying to do things that can really make a difference, such as raising the VAT threshold, not launching headline-making business banks that will only add to the debt burden for microbusiness owners.”

Samantha gave Dr Cable a pen which he promised to use for the rest of the month to remind him to consider microbusinesses in his policy meetings.

“Nothing I’ve seen or heard from him since makes me think he has kept that promise, but our exchange of words has certainly struck a chord across the area and I’ve had a string of messages of support.”
Heather Martyn, a director at Bournemouth- based electronic design company Ammtek, echoes Samantha’s message to the minister.
“Some of these microbusinesses are our future SMEs or, eventually, large organisations and our Government needs to be able to offer incentives to these microbusinesses to become
employers and to grow sustainably,” she says.
“Apprenticeships are a good start but don’t solve all issues. I welcome further communication with Dr Cable and his department on this subject.”