UK ready to offer more visas to Indians for FTA
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson arrived in Ahmedabad on Thursday morning to begin his two-day India visit. Notably, he was received by Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel and Governor Acharya Devvrat. Ahead of his meeting with PM Narendra Modi on Friday, Johnson also implied he was ready to provide more UK visas to Indians in exchange for a free trade agreement (FTA), reported Reuters.
- Inking a free trade deal with India is one of Britain's post-Brexit priorities as it looks to gear policy toward faster-growing economies in the Indo-Pacific region.
- On the other hand, India wants better opportunities for Indians to live and work in the UK.
- However, such a deal will likely depend on relaxing rules and decreasing fees for Indian students and professionals going to Britain.
Johnson reportedly indicated he was ready to offer more visas to India in return for an FTA that could boost bilateral trade by billions of pounds. "I have always been in favor of talented people coming to this country. We are short to the tune of...thousands of people in our economy and we need to have a progressive approach," Reuters quoted Johnson as saying.
Johnson's India visit is also being watched closely by world leaders as he's likely to try and persuade India away from Russia amid its Ukrainian invasion. However, the United Kingdom earlier said it would not look to "lecture" India over its neutral stance in the matter. To recall, India had abstained from UN votes and stayed away from international efforts to criticize Vladimir Putin.
Notably, India and Britain share strong ties in terms of trade. Now, Britain wants to tap into the Indian middle-class's wealth and its appetite for its premium products. It is also looking at making India a customer of the UK's green technology. Britain is hopeful that the FTA could double its exports to India and boost trade by £28 billion per year by 2035.
The British High Commission on Thursday said Johnson will use his India visit to boost "our collaboration with one of the world's fastest-growing economies, slashing trade barriers for UK businesses." It added, "UK and Indian businesses will confirm more than £1 billion in new investments and export deals today (Thursday) in areas from software engineering to health, creating almost 11,000 jobs across the UK."
The British High Commission on Thursday said Johnson will use his India visit to boost "our collaboration with one of the world's fastest-growing economies, slashing trade barriers for UK businesses." It added, "UK and Indian businesses will confirm more than £1 billion in new investments and export deals today (Thursday) in areas from software engineering to health, creating almost 11,000 jobs across the UK."
Notably, the UK prime minister's India visit was long overdue. In 2021, Johnson had to cancel his visit to India for the Republic Day event citing the need to handle the COVID-19 response at home as the reason for his inability to attend the celebrations.
