The 19th series of is finally here, with a brand new group of business owners vying for the opportunity of a lifetime with Lord Sugar.

One of his trusted aides is Tim Campbell, who won the first-ever series in 2005. He co-founded the bespoke digital marketing agency Marketing Runners Ltd, and owns the social enterprise Big Ideas Trust.

Tim has spoken exclusively to Express.co.uk about the , which saw a rise in National Insurance contributions (NICs).

"So I think there needs to be a conversation about what policies we are promoting to encourage more businesses, and maybe all of the ones that came out weren't the best in terms of what could have been done, including those employee contributions," he said.

"You're not gonna change the rules tomorrow. You have to work around what you can do today."

He added: "The opportunities around artificial intelligence and other things are encouraging, but I think there's more work to be done to ensure we promote what we do.

"As Rachel goes around the country and the world promoting what we do, there needs to be a bit more focus on how to get more people to take more risks rather than taking less."

It comes after of entrepreneurs and business owners deciding to relocate outside the UK. Millionaires are likewise choosing to set up their businesses overseas.

The Apprentice has been a familiar business TV show for almost two decades. Last year, it was a hit, with viewers averaging 6.6M per episode and 1.4 million viewers aged 16-34 tuning in.

In similar news, Brewdog co-founder James Watt has slammed The Apprentice for being '20 years out of date' as he announced the launch of his new rival TV business show, House of Unicorns.

Mr Watt spoke to Express Online and said: "You get things like the Dragons' Den and The Apprentice where the format seems 20 years out of date, and they're all set up to make the entrepreneur seem deranged or deluded.

"It's like entertainment at the cost of the founder, entertainment at the cost of the business."

The Apprentice continues at 9pm on Thursday on BBC One.