Why the FTA is critical for the UK and India
India and the United Kingdom (UK)’s West Midlands region’s exciting economic ambitions are connected. Emerging from the seismic shifts set off by Covid-19 and Brexit, the West Midlands (and the whole of the UK) is reshaping economically — and India is at the heart of its vision. Earlier this year, the Queen’s Baton Relay visit, promoting the upcoming Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, coincided with that of the UK’s secretary for international trade, Anne-Marie Trevelyan, to begin negotiations for a new free trade agreement. The deal is important for both regions, building on a historic relationship whereby the UK is already a destination of choice for Indian firms expanding globally, as the third-largest recipient of Indian foreign direct investment.
UK-India trade reached a record high at £23.3 billion in 2019. However, the UK continues to underperform in areas of relative exportstrength, which could enable India’s industry 4.0 aspirations, including advanced manufacturing and information and communications technology services, where innovation partnerships will be critical for helping both markets to become leaders in crosssector growth areas such as 5G, clean tech, smart cities and the internet of things.
The West Midlands is home to many of India’s leading brands, including Tata Motors, Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), the Mahindraowned BSA Motorcycles, the TVS Motorsowned Norton Motorcycle Company, State Bank of India, Infosys, Microland and Ola. This makes the region uniquely positioned within the UK to accelerate cooperation with India on mutually beneficial economic opportunities. The region’s capabilities are aligned to India’s economic ambitions and needs, complementing India’s appetite for rapid, sustained growth and global innovation, embodied in the “Make in India” initiative.
For example, India’s and the West Midland’s economies are intertwined through the automotive industry. In 2008, the struggling Jaguar Land Rover was rescued by Tata Group. Together, we have helped the business become the UK’s largest car manufacturer and a global success story.
It was famously the late Lord (Kumar) Bhattacharyya, who persuaded Ratan Tata to acquire JLR. No one has done more than Lord Bhattacharyya for the West Midlands’ modern economy and India’s automotive sector. Starting his career as a graduate apprentice at Lucas Industries in the West Midlands, he became Britain’s first ever professor of manufacturing, and founded the Warwick Manufacturing Group (WMG) in 1980 to support academic advances in translation into real business and social change. WMG’s partnership and assistance to Tata Motors helped them manufacture their first ever commercial car from India, the Indica.
We now have an opportunity to honour Lord Bhattacharyya’s legacy by furthering our collaboration to develop the car of tomorrow. The UK’s National Automotive Innovation Centre, based in the West Midlands, is a partnership between WMG, JLR, and Tata Motors European Technical Centre.
It brings together the brightest minds from industry and academia, to develop future vehicles and mobility solutions. The West Midlands is also driving forward with plans for a new 530,000 sqm Gigafactory, which will manufacture high-tech lithium-ion batteries for the global automotive and energy storage industries. Collaboration at both of these institutions can be at the heart of India’s vision for 100% electric mobility by 2030 and lead transport’s green revolution globally.
There is also an opportunity for us to also work together for a brighter future around digital health care. We can collaborate to support the ambitious Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission, digitalising all health care data and systems across India. We can offer access to an integrated and curated clinical patient data set from a diverse patient population of over 5.5 million.
This data set and the region’s med-tech ecosystem offers Indian companies working on data-driven health-tech innovations a robust landscape to test and validate new technologies and systems, supported by University Hospital Birmingham.
We look forward to welcoming India’s athletes and supporters for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games. Although we will be competing in sports, both our economies and long-term ambitions will be the real winners if we can further our trade and commercial connections.