Lord Sugar quits Labour over 'negative' business policies

Apprentice star and peer Lord Sugar has announced that he is quitting the Labour party.

Lord Sugar said he ended an 18-year association with Labour after "losing confidence in the party due to their negative business policies" and "general anti-enterprise concepts".

He claimed the party had gone back towards "Old Labour" under Ed Miliband, particularly in relation to business.

He said Labour had been "aware of my disillusionment for some time", adding that he had expressed his concerns to "senior figures"

The peer said he decided to resign at the start of the year but kept his intentions quiet during the election campaign to avoid damaging Labour's chances.

He said that he will continue in the Lords as an independent crossbench peer in order to represent the interests of business and enterprise in the UK.

Ben Bradshaw, Labour MP for Exeter, and a former culture secretary, urged Lord Sugar to reconsider and help the party "back to sanity" in time for 2020.

Lord Sugar's statement in full

A Labour spokesman said: "We would like to thank Alan for his years of generous support and for his service in the Lords, and we wish him well as a crossbench peer."