‘Trade ties with India a priority’
NEW DELHI: In the wake of Brexit, deeper trade relations with India are an absolute priority, says Elizabeth Truss, UK’s secretary of state for international trade and president of the board of trade. In India on a four-day visit for talks with her counterpart Piyush Goyal on an “enhanced trade partnership”, Truss said in an interview that India and the UK had agreed to set up working groups to make progress towards removing priority market access barriers. On tax problems faced by Cairn Energy and Vodafone, Truss said she hoped that arbitral awards by international dispute settlement mechanisms will draw a line under them. Edited excerpts.
What will be the impact of the UK-EU trade deal on the India-UK trade relations? In which sector do you think will there be more opportunity for Indian companies?
This agreement marked the start of the UK’s new chapter as an outward-looking global Britain. It ensures continuity for our trade with Europe and respects our sovereign right to deepen trade with dynamic partners around the world such as India. India is an incredibly important friend, ally and economic partner for the UK, and we want to take that partnership to an even deeper level. India is already an economic powerhouse and will rise to become the world’s second-biggest economy, so we really do see a bright future for India-UK relations.
Our trade relationship was worth £23 billion in 2019 and there are an incredible 383 Indian companies in the UK employing more than 82,000 people supporting jobs in every region and nation.
However, there is potential for so much more. I want to champion the industries of the future with India: advanced manufacturing, services, digital and data trade.
What non-trade and trade barriers are India and the UK seeking to address through the “enhanced trade partnership” agreed to by both sides?
We have taken great strides to remove barriers to trade already, with India recognising the world-class standards of UK farmers by allowing Welsh lamb into its market for the first time. We have agreed to establish a number of working groups and make progress towards removing priority market access barriers.
Meanwhile, we are supporting reforms to the business environment in India through the sharing of the UK’s expertise and experiences on a range of areas, including better regulation, trading across borders, and standards to make it easier for UK investors and exporters to do business in India.
India has proposed reforms in the post-Brexit immigration system in the UK. Will the UK government add India to the list of low-risk countries for movement of skilled workers?
We have recently introduced a single global immigration system, where individuals qualify for a visa based on the skills they can bring to the UK and not based on which country their passport is from. This new system offers more flexibility than the previous system for Indian nationals wishing to work in the UK. We have broadened the skills threshold, lowered salary requirements, suspended the cap and removed the resident labour market test. We are also introducing a graduate route this summer, which will enable Indian students to work for up to 2 years in the UK, or 3 for PhD students, without needing a sponsoring employer.
Many analysts believe signing a free trade agreement with India is not on top of the priority list of UK. What groundwork needs to be done before venturing into such negotiations?
Deeper trade relations with India are absolutely a priority and I am proud to be pushing on with our enhanced trade partnership.