In keeping with the shameless opportunism that has come to embody this government our pitiful PM gatecrashed the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking. Of course, he did.

The official reason was to try and reignite Labour’s failing drive to get more young people into apprenticeships. The fact Lando Norris won the F1 world championship just a few hours earlier was a mere coincidence.

If Sir Keir Starmer was hoping a little Surrey stardust might rub off on him he’s got another think coming.

The only thing that links Starmer (who has a net approval rating of -51) and Chancellor Rachel Reeves, who has left the economy in the pits, and F1 is that both endlessly go round in circles.

Muscling in at McLaren will fool no one because Britain is being lapped by most countries when it comes to skills.

Last year the PM announced the launch of Skills England to bring together central and local government, businesses, training providers and unions in an attempt to meet the needs of the next decade.

It finally spluttered into life 12 months later but, according to those it was set up to serve, performs little useful purpose.

Skills England was meant to create a “coherent national picture of where skills gaps exist and how they can be addressed”.

Like most of what is conceived by Labour it is nothing of the sort.

Despite claims it will play a critical role in driving growth, supporting people to get better jobs and improve standards of living, two thirds of firms do not understand how it works.

In short British businesses have no confidence this government will solve what now amounts to a chronic skills shortage.