After nearly a year-long pause, India and the United Kingdom (UK) on Monday resumed negotiations for a free trade agreement (FTA) and decided to resolve outstanding issues at the earliest but did not give any timeframe for the deal, which has missed multiple deadlines.
Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal and UK’s Secretary of State for Business & Trade Jonathan Reynolds made an announcement about the resumption of talks at a joint media conference in New Delhi.
“We have decided to build on the strong groundwork that 14 previous rounds had developed,” Goyal said, referring to the progress made in earlier rounds of negotiations held before talks were put on hold in early 2024 due to general elections in both the countries.
The negotiations for India-UK FTA were launched in early 2022. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and then UK PM Boris Johnson during a summit meeting in April 2022 had set a target to get the deal signed by October 2022.
Though both the countries have reiterated their commitment to conclude the negotiations fast, no new timeframe has been set.
“Make a robust agreement which is win-win for both sides. Therefore, neither should we rush into things but it’s always good to conclude fast. So we will have speed but not haste,” said Goyal.
“For us it’s about quality of agreement rather than speed,” Reynolds concurred.
Reynolds said the FTA deal with India is among the top priority of the UK government led by current PM Keir Starmer. “Not just my support but very strong support from the Prime Minister,” Reynolds said.
Alongside the FTA, the negotiations will also cover a double taxation avoidance agreement and a Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT).
The two countries made an important clarification on the issue of immigration saying it would not be a part of the trade negotiations.
“I have been negotiating many free trade agreements in the last six years but immigration has never been a part of trade negotiations. They are two totally different subjects and India has never ever discussed immigration in any free trade agreement negotiations,” Goyal said.
Source : https://www.deccanherald.com/india/india-uk-resume-fta-talks-immigration-not-on-agenda-3420083