- Ahead of his first visit to India as UK Prime Minister to attend the G20 World Leaders’ Summit in New Delhi later this week, Sunak updated his top team on the ongoing trade talks.
- The free trade agreement (FTA) talks with India are “progressing” and Britain will only agree to a pact that works for the whole of the United Kingdom, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak told his ministers.
- The British Indian leader described India as an “indispensable partner” of the UK across all spheres of bilateral cooperation, which he is keen to strengthen further.
- UK Business and Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch said that “India is already one of the UK’s largest trading partners, with a relationship worth GBP 36 billion a year”
- India sees a British trade deal as crucial as it aims to become a bigger exporter, while the UK, keen to expand trade opportunities after leaving the European Union.
Ahead of his first visit to India as UK Prime Minister to attend the G20 World Leaders’ Summit in New Delhi later this week, Sunak updated his top team on the ongoing trade talks, which have completed 12 rounds of negotiations, during a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday.
The free trade agreement (FTA) talks with India are “progressing” and Britain will only agree to a pact that works for the whole of the United Kingdom, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak told his ministers. The British Indian leader described India as an “indispensable partner” of the UK across all spheres of bilateral cooperation, which he is keen to strengthen further.
UK Business and Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch, who has returned from a visit to India after talks with Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal last month, also updated the UK Cabinet on the FTA negotiations, saying that “India is already one of the UK’s largest trading partners, with a relationship worth GBP 36 billion a year”.
“The Prime Minister concluded Cabinet by setting out his desire to use our growing relationship in trade, defence, and technology to build a lasting and deep partnership with India which benefits the people of the UK for decades to come,” Downing Street said.
The 43-year-old leader is expected to receive a grand welcome when he arrives in New Delhi, with bilateral talks expected with Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the course of his stay.
The details of the visit are yet to be confirmed by Downing Street.
India sees a British trade deal as crucial as it aims to become a bigger exporter, while the UK, keen to expand trade opportunities after leaving the European Union, would get wider access to its whisky, premium cars, and legal services.
Still to be agreed are issues such as intellectual property rights, rules of origin, and an investment treaty, and campaigners urged Britain not to demand any provisions that might undermine India’s generic drugs industry and make its products more expensive.
Last month, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that India hopes to conclude talks over a free trade deal with Britain by the end of this year. “I won’t be wrong in saying a free trade agreement with the UK is very close,” Ms. Sitharaman said.
(With inputs from agencies)
