LONDON (CU)_British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Wednesday evening, boarded a plane to Gujarat, where he will commence his long-awaited visit in India. speaking of his visit on Sunday (17 April), PM Johnson revealed that it will focus on “the things that really matter” to the people of both nations, from economic growth to job creation, energy security and defence. It appears that securing a free-trade deal with the South Asian nation, that could boost annual bilateral trade by billions of pounds, is also on the top of his agenda, as the British leader signaled he is ready to be more accommodating on an issue that may have stalled talks on a potential deal.
Speaking on the plane on his way to India, the Prime Minister revealed that he is willing to offer more visas to the South Asian nation in return for a trade agreement. “We are short to the tune of hundreds of thousands of people in our economy and we need to have a progressive approach and we will.”
Since its withdrawal from the European Union a couple of years ago, securing a trade deal with India has been one of Britain’s post-Brexit priorities, as the country looks to gear policy towards faster-growing economies in the Indo-Pacific region. Accordingly, London is attempting to tap into the appetite for premium British products among India’s middle classes, as it projects a trade deal to double British exports to the country. In 2019, Britain’s total trade with the world’s second-most populous country was worth £23 billion (US$30 billion), and a free-trade deal with India could push this figure to £28 billion by 2035.
Meanwhile, Delhi wants to expand opportunities for Indians to live and work in the European nation. This has meant that any trade agreement would be contingent on relaxing rules for Indian nationals going to the country.
