Tsar Sir Alan to meet new hopefuls
Sir Alan Sugar is due to meet his new apprentices - in his first role as the Government's Enterprise Tsar.
The self-made millionaire is visiting Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, to front a campaign encouraging more young people to take up apprenticeships.
He will meet apprentices, employers and training providers to listen to their stories and pass on his skills as a business tycoon.
The Government wants to see up to 400,000 apprenticeships on offer in England by 2020, covering one in five young people in total.
Sir Alan, star of BBC1's The Apprentice, said in the advertising campaign, which was launched in February: "The fact is that some people learn better on the job or by seeing how their learning applies to the real world - that's why I'm backing apprenticeships.
"People who do apprenticeships become ambitious, they're 'doers', the kind of people who will make things happen. These are the qualities I look for in people.
"Success is all about finding people like this - people who will help make any business grow, especially in times like these."
The campaign follows a Bill to raise the school leaving age to 18 receiving Royal Assent.
The Bill also gives all adults in England the legal right to funding for basic literacy and numeracy courses and some vocational qualifications.
