Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will begin his two-day visit to London today to sign a trade agreement between his country and the UK. The Free Trade Agreement (FTA) will ease tariffs on British whisky, cars and some food items, while the UK will offer duty-free access to Indian textiles and electric vehicles. Sir Keir Starmer said the “landmark deal” with India would “grow the economy and deliver for British people and business”.
By removing trade barriers, the agreement will grant both countries greater access to the other’s markets. After three years of negotiations, the pact was finally agreed upon in May, but it won’t come into effect until parliament and India’s federal cabinet approve. This marks Modi’s fourth visit to the UK as the Indian prime minister before he travels onwards to the Maldives for more bilateral discussions.
The Indian Prime Minister will hold discussions with Sir Keir on bilateral relations between the countries and review the progress of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.
The partnership covers trade, investment, technology, innovation, defence, education, research, and sustainability.
Modi said in a statement this morning: “India and UK share a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership that has witnessed significant progress in recent years.
“During my meeting with Prime Minister Rt Hon Sir Keir Starmer, we will have the opportunity to further enhance our economic partnership, aimed at fostering prosperity, growth and jobs creation in both countries.”
He is also due to meet with King Charles during the short but significant visit, though not much is known about what this will entail.
The agreement will slash tariffs on Scoth whisky from 150% to 75% immediately, before dropping down further to 40% over the next decade.
India will also cut duties on cars from 100% to 10% based on a quota system that will be liberalised over the years. In return, the UK will offer Indian manufacturers access to its market for electric and hybrid vehicles, also under a quota system.
The Indian commerce ministry officials said 99% of Indian exports to Britain would have zero duties under the deal, including textiles. On the flip side, Britain will see reductions on 90% of its tariffs.
Overall, the FTA aims to double bilateral trade from the current £44 billion by 2030.
The two leaders are expected to discuss trade, defence, climate change, innovation, and education. Modi and Sir Keir’s “wide ranging” talks are also due to touch on AI and security collaboration, including military exchanges.
The issue of climate change is expected to be an important one, particularly as a carbon tax was not included in the FTA.
Ajay Srivastava, head of the Global Trade Research Initiative in New Delhi, warned that the sensitive topic could “wipe out” the trade deal’s benefits for Indian exporters.
He said: “The carbon tax remains the elephant in the room. It could wipe out the benefits of the free trade agreement for Indian exporters.”
Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal will also be in attendance after leading the three-year-long negotiations.