UK’S Brexit minister credits free trade for India’s growth

LONDON: Remaking the case for free trade first espoused by Adam Smith in 1776, international trade secretary Liam Fox on Thursday credited India’s growth and lifting many of its people above the povertylinetotheadoptiontheprinciples and practices of free trade.

Deliveringaspeechinmanchester, Fox, who is one of three key ministerstaskedwithnegotiating Brexit,saidthecriticsoffreetrade would do well to evaluate the failuresofalternativeeconomicmodelsandcomparethemwiththesuccesses of India, China and Vietnam.“anyeconomistworthhisor her salt can see that free trade has been one of the most potent liberators of the world’s poor. In 1993, around 45% of India’s population satbelowthepovertyline;in2011it was 22% – and it is no coincidence thatindiaembracedglobalisation and started to liberalise ”, he said.

Dwelling on the benefits of free trade, Fox said he was certain that Tata’s investment in Britain’s automotive sector benefited the Indian car industry, just as UK investmentintheindianchemical sector allowed Britain’s pharma firms to draw on new techniques.

“That is the glorious joy of free trade – it is not a zero-sum game, it really can be win-win”, he said.