Business leaders in the South West have called for decisive action from the main political parties after the UK election resulted in a parliament with no overall majority. CBI South West director David Rosser said: “We would like to see an arrangement reached quickly which is strong enough to start to take some of the difficult decisions necessary to address the public finances and satisfy the markets this will be tackled seriously.” Gerry Jones, South West regional chair for the Institute of Directors, said: “The change now has to come from the top – and the sooner there is clarity the better. Any horse-trading behind the scenes needs to happen swiftly for businesses to remain confident. Here in the South West the Conservatives have performed strongly and the prevailing sentiment among many of our members is that a strong Conservative-led coalition government would be best for business interests.” Mike Bennett, chief executive of creatives coalition Bristol Media, said the hung parliament had “given all the parties a bloody nose” but the priority now was to see decisive action so that big economic issues facing the country are tackled quickly. “If decisions can’t be reached speedily that will affect businesses. We need answers and we need direction. It’s time for the politicians to step up and come up with something workable fast.”

A hung parliament could cost the South West economy if it means key economic decisions aren’t taken, business leaders have warned. Phil Smith, joint managing director of GWE Business West, said: “With no clear party in control there is less likely to be a clear mandate for action and decision-making.” But Smith said some decisions could not wait: “How we handle the nation’s debt, how we continue our economic recovery and how best we support business in the short term.” John Savage of GWE Business West said: “We would like to see a clear plan developed for the next few months and support the British Chambers of Commerce 90-day plan for business growth as a starting point for those discussions.” Savage said it was imperative that a hung parliament did not result in a lack of action on key economic issues.

The Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats both performed strongly in the South West, with Labour trailing. With only two seats in the region still to declare by lunchtime, the Conservatives have 35 seats in the South West and 42.9 per cent of the vote, while the Lib Dems have 13 seats and 34.1 per cent of the vote. For the Conservatives this represents a net gain of 11 seats, but for the Lib Dems this is three down on its 2005 showing in the region, even though its share of the vote in the region was up by 2.2 percentage points to 34.1 per cent. And for Labour it was a night to forget in the West; it took just 15.9 per cent of the vote, resulting in just four seats.

The hung parliament could dent the region’s commercial property market, property consultancy Knight Frank has warned. Labour’s stated plan to move 15,000 civil service jobs out of London to the regions – with the South West as a strong contender to benefit from any relocations – now looks an irrelevance. And if the political indecision continues for long in the context of wider economic concerns that are starting to mount about the European economies that could affect the UK and the West. “The perception of a weak coaltion government and the potential for indecision has implications for Britain’s credit rating, currency and markets – and that’s even before we know what action will be taken and by whom,” said Claire Higgins, head of commercial research for Knight Frank.