Page 13 - India Uk

Sonia Gandhi writes to British PM Sunak, hopes India-UK ties will deepen

Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi on Wednesday congratulated Rishi Sunak on his elevation as British Prime Minister and hoped India's ties with the UK will further deepen during his tenure. "I am delighted at your taking over as Prime Minister of Great Britain. It is certainly a matter of pride for all of us in India," she said in her letter to Sunak, who is of Indian origin. "India-Britain relations have always been very special and I am confident that they will be further deepened during your tenure," Gandhi said. Sunak on Tuesday took charge as Britain's first Indian-origin Prime Minister with a promise to put the crisis-hit country's needs "above politics" and "fix the mistakes" made by his predecessor, a day after he was elected the leader of the Conservative Party in a historic leadership run. The 42-year-old investment banker-turned politician is the youngest British prime minister in 210 years. He is also Britain's first Hindu Prime Minister. Sunak's ..

External Affairs Minister Jaishankar speaks to British counterpart Cleverly

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Tuesday spoke to his British counterpart James Cleverly on a day Rishi Sunak took charge as the UK's first Indian-origin prime minister. In the Cabinet reshuffle being effected by Sunak, Cleverly is set to stay as the foreign secretary. In a tweet, Jaishankar said he and the British foreign secretary discussed counter-terror cooperation, bilateral ties and the Ukraine conflict. "Received a call from UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly. Discussed counter-terrorism, bilateral relations and the Ukraine conflict," Jaishankar said. On his part, Cleverly said, "Great to speak with India's External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar today." "We discussed the Russia-Ukraine crisis and that the UK will be challenging Russia's rhetoric and allegations during the UNSC today," he said. In his first address at the doorstep of 10 Downing Street in London, Sunak said that he takes over at a time when the UK is facing a "profound economic crisis" as it dea

Political stability may give impetus to India-UK trade pact talks: Experts

Rishi Sunak becoming the UK's prime minister is likely to give much-needed momentum to ongoing negotiations for the proposed free trade agreement between India and Britain, trade experts say. The countries have already missed the Diwali deadline for concluding the negotiations because of political developments in the UK. According to the experts, political stability in the UK now would help fast-track the negotiations for the pact, which would give a boost to the bilateral trade and investments between the countries. Sunak, 42, on Monday won the race to lead the Conservative Party and is now set to become Britain's first prime minister of Indian origin. It is a very positive news for India. The development will definitely help in giving much-needed momentum to the talks, Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) Vice Chairman Khalid Khan said. However, Biswajit Dhar, Professor in the Jawaharlal Nehru University, said the new UK prime minister would like to first focus on .

UK's third female PM Liz Truss leaves office without India trade deal prize

Britain's third female Prime Minister, Liz Truss, is out of office on Thursday after one of the shortest tenures at 10 Downing Street in London and without a cherished India-UK free trade agreement (FTA) under her belt as a Brexit prize. Truss, who until Wednesday insisted in Parliament that she was a "fighter and not a quitter", resigned after just six weeks after her position became untenable after a series of policy U-turns, Cabinet upheavals and an open revolt against her ability to lead a deeply divided Conservative Party. Truss, who in her innings as foreign and trade minister batted for stronger bilateral ties with India, took charge at 10 Downing Street last month after defeating Indian-origin ex-chancellor Rishi Sunak in the Conservative Party leadership race. The 47-year-old was faced with one of the toughest in-trays in the top job as a result of the spiralling cost-of-living crisis in the country, which rivalled any of the issues faced by her women predecessors in office

India trade deal matters more than date, says UK trade minister

The Diwali timeline for a draft FTA had been announced by former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson during his meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi in April

'Eager' to secure trade deal with India, says UK's Home Secretary Braverman

Home Secretary Suella Braverman has said the UK is "eager" to secure a trade deal with India to boost both economies and that Brexit has meant that Britain no longer has a Eurocentric mindset towards trade or visas, days after she caused a stir with her "concerns" over what she feared could be an "open borders" approach in the ongoing trade talks with India. Addressing a Diwali event organised by UK-based India Global Forum (IGF) here on Tuesday evening, the Indian-origin Cabinet minister spoke of being a proud member of the British Indian community and hailed the contribution made by the Indian diaspora to British life. In an apparent effort to override her recent controversial remarks about Indians forming the largest group of visa overstayers, the minister said the UK's villages, towns and cities have been profoundly enriched by immigration from India. "Naturally, there is an economic imperative for our countries to work together, which is why we are so eager to secure a trade ..

Wait for India-UK free trade agreement likely to extend until mid-2023

One of the officials said that the trade deal between India and the UK is at the last stage

No longer working to Diwali deadline for India trade pact: Kemi Badenoch

The free trade agreement (FTA) talks with India are no longer working towards a Diwali deadline though negotiations are progressing well, UK Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch has said as New Delhi expressed confidence on Friday of an "early date" for a mutually beneficial deal. "There are ongoing negotiations as we know on the FTA. There is interest on both sides to see if we can work towards a deal, an FTA, that is beneficial to both the countries at an early date," External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi told reporters in New Delhi. It came as External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar spoke to his UK counterpart, James Cleverly, and referenced the Roadmap 2030 bilateral agreement signed between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and former UK PM Boris Johnson in May last year, with no specific reference to the FTA. A good conversation with UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly. Reviewed various aspects of our bilateral relationship and committed to taking forward Roadmap 2030 ...

India-UK free trade agreement to miss Diwali deadline, says report

Previous sticking points have included a steep import duty on British whiskey for sale in India and India's demand for more visas for Indian students and businesses.

UK wants stronger trading relationship with India, says FM Cleverly

UK FM James Cleverly said Britain wanted to have an even stronger trading relationship with India after reports that remarks by a fellow minister about immigrants could put future deal in doubt

Still looking for free trade deal with India by Diwali, says Britain

New Delhi is also seeking to claw back half a billion pounds in payments made by Indian workers toward Britain's social security system as part of the deal

India-UK trade deal on verge of 'collapse' over visa comments: Report

The India-UK free trade agreement (FTA) is reportedly on the verge of collapse after the Indian government was angered by comments made by UK Home Secretary Suella Braverman questioning action over visa overstayers from the country, a UK media report claimed on Wednesday. The Times' newspaper quoted government sources to say that ministers in New Delhi were shocked and disappointed by the disrespectful remarks made by Braverman, who said she had concerns of an open borders offer to India as part of an FTA. The likelihood of meeting the Diwali deadline for the pact, set by former Prime Minister Boris Johnson, is now believed to be diminishing. There's still a lot of goodwill but if certain individuals are still embedded in the [UK] government it will paralyse the talks, the newspaper quoted a source as saying. Last week, Braverman, the Indian-origin Home Secretary said in an interview that she feared a trade deal with India would increase migration to the UK when Indians already ...

India-UK free trade deal stuck on free access to skilled workers

Any failure to conclude a trade accord with Britain will be a missed opportunity for India, a nation upon which many economies are pinning their hopes amid intensified geopolitical struggles

India-UK Free Trade Agreement talks face deadlock over data: Report

Data localisation and UK companies being allowed to bid for Indian government contracts are among the issues causing a possible deadlock in the final stages of the India-UK free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations towards a Diwali draft completion deadline, according to a UK media report on Sunday. 'The Daily Telegraph' quoted a source close to the talks to say that data localisation rules that prevent foreign companies taking data out of India and allowing UK firms to bid for public sector contracts are two key "sticking points" to a comprehensive deal. The likelihood of a so-called "thin" trade deal within the symbolic Diwali or October 24 deadline and further iterative deals at a later stage is now looking like a likely outcome. "The stumbling blocks are absolutely to do with digital. How ambitious and comprehensive this deal is is in some way a function of time," the newspaper quoted an "insider" as saying. It follows UK Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch indicating earlier this week

Action initiated on all cases: India on UK's visa overstayer claim

India has countered UK Home Secretary Suella Braverman's claim that the Migration and Mobility Partnership (MMP) had not "worked very well" to say that India had initiated action on all cases raised with it under the agreement. In response to a PTI query about Braverman's interview in The Spectator' that branded Indians as the largest group of people who overstay their visas in the UK, the Indian High Commission here said that India awaits demonstrable progress on certain commitments undertaken by the UK government under the MMP that was signed last year. As part of our wider discussions under Migration and Mobility, the government of India is committed to working with the government of the UK to facilitate the return of Indian citizens who have overstayed their visa period here in the UK, the High Commission of India statement said on Thursday. As per the data shared with the Home Office, as of date, action has been initiated on all of the cases referred to the High Commission. ...

India won't yield on national interest to meet FTA deadlines: Piyush Goyal

Comments come a day after UK home secretary cast doubts over the proposed FTA with India over the issue of migration, and branded Indians as the largest group who overstay their visas

Free trade agreement with India won't be 'free-for-all deal': UK minister

The free trade agreement (FTA) being negotiated with India won't be a "free for all deal" but something that is good for both countries and not a particular sector, the UK government cautioned on Tuesday as a Diwali deadline set at the prime ministerial level for the pact approaches. UK Secretary of State for International Trade Kemi Badenoch, who is in charge of the FTA negotiations under the Prime Liz Truss led government, was addressing concerns around access for the country's services sector into the Indian market at the Conservative Party annual conference in Birmingham. The senior Cabinet minister also indicated that the Diwali timeline set by former Prime Minister Boris Johnson was not "arbitrary" and could be met with further aspects covered beyond that deadline. "We want something comprehensive, but it has to be right for both countries," said Badenoch. "The Prime Minister has a deadline, which the previous Prime Minister had. That was quite a long deadline, so it's not ..

India-UK free-trade agreement: Carmakers object to sharp import duty cut

India's auto industry push for a phased duty reduction to protect interests

India-UK FTA first step in evolving trade, economic ties: UK official

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set a very ambitious desire to get the India-UK Free Trade Agreement signed by Diwali and his new British counterpart Liz Truss wants her administration to "match the pace and ambition" of the Indian leader, UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly has said. Cleverly also said that the bilateral relationship between India and UK is longstanding and wide-ranging, which is both a "huge plus" but it also means that "quite understandably there is a desire to have a very, very wide-ranging, meaningful free trade agreement." "Obviously, Prime Minister Modi has set a very ambitious desire to get a free trade agreement signed by Diwali. Now that means that both us and Indian negotiators are going to have to work very, very hard but we are very willing to do so," Cleverly told PTI in an interview here Wednesday on the margins of the high-level UN General Assembly session. "We want to make sure that the deal that we do, ideally by Diwali, is the first step in a ...

India, UK working to meet Diwali deadline for completing FTA: Piyush Goyal

Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal on Tuesday said the UK is keen to stick to the Diwali deadline for India-UK free trade agreement and both countries are working towards it