The entrepreneur, who has has previously called the prospect of a Labour-SNP coalition “terrifying”, was speaking at SUMMIT: The Future of Growth conference at Bloomberg’s London headquarters.
He added: “It is still possible for the Conservatives to win an outright majority, unlikely though, by all accounts. You’ve got jobs – so what have they done wrong, why aren’t they connecting, why has this campaign been so negative?”.
In the same session, fellow panellist John Cridland, director-general of the CBI, called for the banking sector to back businesses.
He said: “Lower taxes tend to generate more revenue. We have to get out there as a country and earn our corn as a country by exporting. And we have to tackle our deficit on infrastructure if we want business to be able to get out there and export.
“One really good example of that is if you want more businesses to get on aeroplanes to far-flung parts of the world like Jakarta and Mexico City, you need more flights. And if you need more flights, you need another runway.”
On the uncertainty of the General Election, fellow panellist Norman Pickvance, Grant Thornton’s Head of People and Culture, said: “I believe one of the reasons why this election is so close to call is because of a profound lack of trust in politicians. That lack of trust is also something that applies to the business community.
“Creating a vibrant economy is absolutely vital if people and businesses are to thrive. To create this, first and foremost you need trust and integrity in financial markets. We don’t, and that needs to be restored.”
