Lord Sugar fails to impress in House

As Lord Sugar of Clapton serves his apprenticeship in the House of Lords, records show he has voted only three times in the past year.

Lord Sugar, who remains better known for his television work and previous success in the business world, was appointed a Labour peer in July last year by Gordon Brown, for whom he acted as "enterprise tsar". (Had he been made a minister, he would have had to give up his role on The Apprentice.)

According to TheyWorkForYou.com, Lord Sugar hasn't tabled a written question since the general election and has taken part in 5 per cent of votes – well below average. He has spoken in nine debates in the past year, about average for peers.