London, Dec 26: The UK-India ties grew steadily in 2017, with the British government laying the groundwork for a new post-Brexit economic partnership with New Delhi amid concerns over its tough stance on movement of professionals and students between the two nations.
The cultural strand of the bilateral relationship may have dominated the year, with grand celebrations at some of the UK’s major institutions to also mark 70 years of India’s independence, but the Foreign Office highlighted that other aspects of the ties remain equally at the forefront, especially within the context of Brexit.
“Prime Minister (Narendra) Modi described the connection between our people as a ‘living bridge’ and that link has been strengthened during the 2017 UK-India Year of Culture,” said a UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) spokesperson.
“Our economic relationship is thriving and we want to expand our 16 billion pounds worth of bilateral trade, generating more jobs and building skills in the coming years, especially looking ahead to intensifying our trading relationship after Britain leaves the EU,” the spokesperson said.
Describing the two countries as “modern, diverse and vibrant democracies”, the UK government is keen to step into the New Year by building on the “shared connections and values” which make for a “natural partnership” as Britain prepares to host the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in April, 2018.
Prince Charles, who will be stepping in for the Queen as the head of the Commonwealth at this year’s proceedings, had extended a formal invitation to Prime Minister Modi during a high-profile visit to India in November. “Next year’s Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) will provide an opportunity for the UK, India and all Commonwealth members to build a reformed and revitalized Commonwealth that is more prosperous, secure, sustainable and fair for all our citizens,” the FCO spokesperson noted.
As the UK prepares for a potential Modi visit for the summit next year, it will be keen to edge a little closer to the much-anticipated free trade agreement that both sides are expected to clinch once Britain has formally exited the EU by March 2019.
A Joint Working Group on Trade set up to lay the groundwork for a new post-Brexit economic partnership has held a few meetings this year but progress on that front is unlikely to be very significant until Britain is seen to soften its stance on the free movement of professionals and students. Indian high commissioner to the UK, Y K Sinha, has been making that point at various platforms, most recently in November at the London launch of the Indian Professionals Forum (IPF), a non-profit think-tank for Indian diaspora related policy advocacy set up to strengthen India-UK relations.
PTI
