'Apprentice' loser to be offered council job

The runner-up in this year's Apprentice will be offered a job by Essex County Council, reports the BBC.

The position will be created and tailored towards the strengths of the second-placed candidate from the show.

Claire Young, Lee McQueen, Helene Speight and Alex Wotherspoon will all compete for a job at Sir Alan Sugar's Amstrad firm in Wednesday's final.

Council leader Lord Hanningfield said: "Essex County Council is as ambitious as any private company. We unashamedly want the best and brightest to come and work for us.

"Perceptions need to change. Working in local government is every bit as challenging and rewarding, if not more so, than the private sector."

He added: "Sir Alan Sugar's company is based right here in Essex - so this is about the ambition of the county as a whole, both private and public sector working together, to deliver the best possible quality of life for the people of Essex."

The Apprentice final airs Wednesday at 9pm on BBC One.