I write having hosted at the House of Lords the largest delegation of property developers from India ever to visit the UK. All the major construction firms and also financiers were there and just a few days before Independence it was good to point out that in this Parliament on 18 July 1947 they passed the Independence of India Act. How ridiculous! How can a Parlament give Independence to a 5,000-year-old civilisation?
Speaking to dozens of Indian entrepreneurs – the real ones who have startups not the multi-nationals, the ones most likely to be affected by Brexit, the ones without political connections – this is what I found from my trip to Pune, Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad…just a selection of comments:
Of course, the funniest were the ones questioning the intellect of the average Brexit voter. My Indian guests found it hilarious how stupid the Brexiters could be. My guests from India were not shy or diplomatic in their language.
They then asked my views on a host of matters. Here is what I said:
Immigration
My view as a businessman, not in any Government role or statement, was that leaving the EU was about stopping unqualified immigrants to the UK from the EU. So surely that means more numbers from India. That was just what logic told me. I did explain that does not mean open borders for India but the rules remain open for quality candidates.
Business
The whole point of Brexit I said was to reduce red tape and make doing business easier. I will go by what Anand Mahindra said about it being good for Indian companies no longer hampered by entering the UK market because of some regulation to protect, say, the Romanians from the competition.
I explained in my experience Indian companies were coming to the UK, not for the access to the EU alone, but the ease of doing business and going global from Britain.
Access to EU
I explained I see it inconceivable that a bunch of capitalist free trading countries decide to suddenly become restrictive. It would be irrational. Britain does not have a union with America, but both manage to trade openly.
Economy
I explained to the British Deputy High Commissioners and others that the windfall has been unexpected from the vote in some regards. The cost of borrowing for the British government has dropped to the lowest level ever. So it presents a great opportunity for the Government to borrow for 30 years fixed at zero percent cost and invest that money in infrastructure, so we get a return on that investment.
Those were the top four questions and my answers to them.
Importance of India
Brexit makes Independent India more important than ever to Britain. That is obvious. But Britain with its capital markets makes it more important than ever to India with its growth needing funds to build roads, railways, power station. Do not for one-moment lecture either side. They both know what needs to be done and do not need patronising commentators on the sidelines lecturing them in the press.
