Negotiating teams to restart India FTA talks soon: UK

London: The process of getting negotiating teams back in the room will kick-start soon to deliver a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with India, the UK’s newly elected Labour government announced on Monday as it set out its trading priorities.

Business and Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds spelt out his department’s approach to international trade deals, which he said will put economic growth at the heart of the negotiations to achieve high-quality pacts that give British businesses access to international markets and boost jobs.

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) said it also plans to publish a trade strategy which aligns with the government’s industrial strategy, enhances economic security and supports net zero ambitions.

“Boosting trade abroad is essential to deliver a strong economy at home. That’s why I’ve wasted no time taking stock of progress and getting ready to press on with trade talks with our international partners,” said Reynolds.

“From the Gulf to India, our trade programme is ambitious and plays to the UK’s strengths to give British businesses access to some of the most exciting economies in the world. Our teams will be entering negotiating rooms as soon as possible, laser-focused on creating new opportunities for UK firms so they can support jobs across the country and deliver the growth we desperately need,” he said.

India and the UK began negotiating an FTA in January 2022 under the then Conservative Party government and 13 rounds of negotiations have been completed since then to enhance the GBP 38.1 billion a year bilateral partnership. Reynolds has now set the tone for the new Labour government’s plans to not only sign off on a deal, but also to carry on the process from where it was left off in the fourteenth round of discussions amid general elections in both countries.

“India, with which the UK is negotiating a Free Trade Agreement and Bilateral Investment Treaty, is projected to be the world’s third largest economy by 2027. A trade deal would give UK businesses better access to its burgeoning market of middle-class consumers, projected to grow to over a quarter of a billion consumers by 2050,” notes the DBT.