David Lammy orders diplomats to 'channel' The Apprentice's Alan Sugar abroad

Foreign Secretary David Lammy has urged his apical diplomats to deliberation similar Lord Alan Sugar arsenic they bang the drum for Britain overseas - successful the Government's latest propulsion to occurrence up growth

David Lammy has ordered diplomats “to transmission their interior Alan Sugar” arsenic portion of the conflict to occurrence up economical growth.

The Foreign Secretary is understood to person told his squad to deliberation similar The Apprentice prima successful a top-level gathering astatine the Foreign Office past week. It comes arsenic the 77-year-old tycoon is backmost connected surface successful the latest bid of the long-running BBC show.

Reviving the flagging system has go the cardinal plank of Keir Starmer's strategy. But the Bank of England dealt a stroke to the Government’s ambitions by slashing the maturation forecast to 0.75% successful 2025, down from its erstwhile estimation of 1.5%.

Ministers person been told they indispensable warrant caller ideas based connected the imaginable for cranking up growth, arsenic Chancellor Rachel Reeves vowed to spell "further and faster" to get the system going.

Last week, Mr Lammy told diplomats: “Driving economical maturation is this Government’s fig 1 mission, to present much jobs and much wealth successful people’s pockets. That is wherefore I americium asking diplomats to transmission their Alan Sugar and bang the drum for British concern crossed the world.

"I’ve tasked diplomats to merchantability UK Plc, highlighting our country’s strengths from our apical universities to our unfastened system and dependable ineligible system.”

After a tricky archetypal six months successful office, the PM is present betting the location connected getting the system firing earlier the adjacent election.

The Prime Minister called successful his apical squad for an extended Cabinet gathering successful Lancaster House contiguous aft the Bank of England dealt a stroke to efforts to occurrence up economical growth. The slope reduced involvement rates to 4.5%, successful a boost to mortgage-holders.

But policymakers besides painted a gloomy representation for the UK system by halving their maturation forecast for this twelvemonth and informing households to brace for higher ostentation and chopped economical maturation forecasts.

Mr Starmer called successful the Cabinet for a governmental gathering this morning, wherever Labour's falling canvass ratings and the upcoming section elections were expected to beryllium discussed. The PM past chaired a afloat Cabinet meeting, wherever the absorption was connected the concern of Government.