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Importance of Theresa May's visit to India

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Ramah Srinivasan
Ramah SrinivasanOct 25, 2016 | 14:17

Importance of Theresa May's visit to India

Theresa May’s visit to India during the India-UK Tech Summit next month happens to be her first visit to a nation outside the European Union (EU) since she took over as British Prime Minister.

As with PM Narendra Modi’s visit to London last November, May’s visit this November is also likely to be given the highest priority and possibly declared as the one that will raise the two countries’ historic, political and economic league.

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May will land in New Delhi on November 7, where she will inaugurate the India-UK Tech Summit alongside Modi. The summit, described as South Asia’s largest technology conference, will provide a platform for promoting technology-intensive trade between the two countries.

This deal is not going to be one of bilateral ties only. It will prove to be an acid test for the UK as to whether it can create hopes of forging stronger and lasting bonds with non-EU countries while steadfastly maintaining the new tougher immigration regime that has been mandated by the Brexit referendum. 

"As we leave the EU, I am determined to capitalise on those opportunities and as we embark on the trade mission to India, we will send the message that the UK will be the most passionate, most consistent, and most convincing advocate for free trade," she said.

On the relationship with India, May has stressed focus on forging links with small and medium-sized enterprises (about 120 UK SMEs are to join her on her trip) similar to the successful German approach, which targets a large number of solid opportunities than a few headline grabbing deals.

Due to consistent prompting by UK officials, one significant issue to be discussed at the bilateral meeting is the all-important India-UK free trade agreement. Elaborate informal negotiations between the two countries could and may hopefully result in a deal being concluded speedily after the British exit from the EU.

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A Britain not chained by EU conditions is keenly looked for by India. Then, Britain would have the chance to throw open its doors in all areas, proving to the world that it is indeed unshackled.

A number of commercial deals are expected to be signed during May's trip, to help create UK jobs and demonstrate market confidence in the strength of the British economy after the Brexit vote, Downing Street said.

International trade secretary Liam Fox will join the delegation and attend the joint economic and trade committee, where British and Indian business leaders, innovators and entrepreneurs will discuss how to take ties between the two countries to the next level.

However, the tougher stance on immigration declared by Britain’s conservative government and changes in rules governing intra-company transfers, widely used by the Indian IT sector and due to be ushered in this year, are already making the Indian public and industry a little shaky.

The FICCI feels that Indian firms already apprehensive about the Brexit impact on their investments are being further jolted by these declarations.

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Former UK business secretary Vince Cable has said May blocked plans to bring in Indian immigrants into the domain of IT, claiming the former home secretary was obsessed with immigration.

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Under the rule of the previous government, India had been keen to expand “Mode 4” market access - the ability to bring in staff such as IT experts as part of trading in services.

"What the Indians were asking for was very modest – and these are the kind of people who, if we were being rational, we would want to have in the country," Cable said.

Though Britain undoubtedly needs immigration control, it is necessary that there is a balanced approach, points out Manoj Ladwa, a London-based political strategist and former adviser to Modi’s electoral campaign, drawing attention to the imbalance in the visa regime for Chinese and Indian visitors to the UK. 

There need to be solid gestures from the UK to show that it is open for business and at the same time, understands and honours the value that Indian business, students and tourists add to the UK economy.

One more depressing and overshadowing issue will be Britain’s unchanged stand on Kashmir and Pakistan. Despite 20,000 signatures on a parliamentary petition calling for the UK government to condemn Pakistan and cross-border terrorism, the UK government only went to the extent of insisting that the country had made significant sacrifices in opposing terrorism, which did not sound convincing.

Whether May’s visit to India will signal a triumphant moment for Brexiteers and others, including India, of their exercise to succeed, or whether it will be a painful reminder of the challenges in swimming through the global stage with a tough stance on immigration, will be witnessed next month.

Britain wants to work for everyone all right. But whether it wants others to work for it too, especially India, is a big question in the minds of all those looking west for education and work opportunities.

They will find the answers soon. 

Last updated: November 07, 2016 | 15:23
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