Duncan Bannatyne, star of BBC TV’s Dragons’ Den and a large national employer, is putting his weight behind a major new initiative to improve the skills of the Nation.

Mr Bannatyne, Chairman of the Bannatyne Group, which includes health clubs, hotels and spas, has signed the ‘Skills Pledge’, a joint government and CBI initiative, supported by the Learning and Skills Council (LSC),encouraging employers to train their workforce. The businessman has committed to increasing the number of people in his organisation with a minimum NVQ Level 2 qualification.