New Delhi: As the new government took charge in Britain, India and the UK are likely to soon hold the next round of talks this month for the proposed free trade agreement (FTA) to resolve the pending issues therein and close the negotiations as well. All the concerned senior officials of both the countries are in touch, and the next round of talks would start this month only, a source privy to development said on Sunday. The India-UK talks for the proposed free trade agreement began in January 2022. The 14th round of talks stalled as the two nations stepped into their general election cycles. Even Britain’s newly-elected Prime Minister Keir Starmer spoke to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday and said that he stood ready to conclude an FTA that worked for both sides. The two leaders agreed to work towards the early conclusion of a mutually beneficial India-UK FTA. There are likely pending issues in both the goods and services sectors. The Indian industry is demanding greater access for its skilled professionals from sectors like IT and healthcare in the UK market, besides market access for several goods at nil customs duty. On the other hand, the UK is seeking a significant cut in import duties on goods such as scotch whiskey, electric vehicles, lamb meat, chocolates and certain confectionary items. In the proposed talks, Britain is also looking for more opportunities for UK services in Indian markets in segments like telecommunications, legal and financial services (banking and insurance). “The two countries are also negotiating a bilateral investment treaty (BIT). There are 26 chapters in the agreement, which include goods, services, investments and intellectual property rights,” the sources said. The bilateral trade between India and the UK increased to $21.34 billion in 2023-24 from 20.36 billion in 2022-23. The Labour Party’s election manifesto for the recent polls also committed to clinching the deal. The new Starmer-led government’s new Foreign Secretary David Lammy is also on the record saying that he wants to finish the job on the FTA and plans to visit India within the first month of being elected. According to the think tank Global Trade Research Initiative or GTRI, the agreement is nearly finalised and with a few minor adjustments like curtailing the number of visas for Indian professionals, the Labour Party is likely to give its approval. “India should focus on two issues – Carbon Border Adjustment Measure (CBAM) and non-traditional subjects like labour, environment, gender, and intellectual property rights in the pact,” the GTRI suggested.
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