Tory leader David Cameron says he is willing to look at tax incentives for social investment if his party comes to power.
Making the keynote speech at the Voice 09, the Social Enterprise Coalition's annual conference in Birmingham this week, Cameron gave what many delegates described as a disappointing performance with many warm words of support but no new policy announcements for social enterprise.
His speech focused largely on his party's agenda to promote jobs and training, cutting bureaucracy, and promoting a more caring form of capitalism. He also talked about Conservative plans to create social enterprise zones - announced two years ago - and said a social investment bank would help social businesses to play their part.
Taking questions from the floor after his speech, he told Big Issue Invest CEO Nigel Kershaw that he would be prepared to look at a new tax regime to encourage social investment. 'The short answer is, yes,' Cameron said.
He added: 'We should certainly talk to you because it looks like you are a small social investment bank of your own.'
Cameron did get one cheer from delegates, when he said he hated the phrase 'third sector', adding that the term 'first sector' was more appropriate 'because you are there first, before the other two'.
