Apprentices are the way forward, Lord Sugar tells UJS

Training schemes and internships could be better co-ordinated to benefit both businesses and potential employees, Lord Sugar has told Jewish students.

He said interns were a distraction for workers and that independent training programmes funded by the government should be scrapped in favour of directly paying companies to train apprentices.

The veteran businessman was speaking during a Union of Jewish Students event in central London last week, ahead of the relaunch of his BBC hit show The Apprentice.

In conversation with Times journalist and JC columnist Daniel Finkelstein, Lord Sugar said exams had been “dumbed down” and criticised what he said was a lack of drive in young people.