India Inc. as part of its Policy India Programme hosted its third high-level Policy India Summit in London on 17th November 2015 hosted by the law firm- Allen and Overy in their London Headquarter.
The focus was on India-UK bilateral trade & investment within the context of an impact assessment of the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent visit to the UK in November.
High-profile speakers included Indian Commerce Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, UK employment minister Priti Patel, Indian High Commissioner to UK Ranjan Mathai among others. Other key CEOs such as Lord Karan Bilimoria and senior representatives from some of the world’s leading organisations like JCB, EY, KPMG, Standard Chartered were present too.
Britain's Employment Minister Priti Patel said, “This visit has truly been a vibrant illustration of the partnership and the commitment we have to India… the UK will remain the place for India to come to within Europe.
“What stood out for me throughout the duration of this visit was the natural affinity between our two countries, rooted in 1.5 million strong Indian diaspora in Britain that have contributed so richly to British life, success and identity.
“Our people-to-people ties, between British Indians and Indians have been strengthened as a result of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the UK. Ours is also a natural partnership for a mutually shared prosperity.”
Her views were echoed on the Indian side by commerce minister Nirmala Sitharaman who said: “The UK matters to India and, to quote Prime Minister Modi, the UK has proven to be a very strong partner for India within Europe.”
The Indian minister also reiterated her government’s commitment to the reform agenda, which will be derailed by the results of any state election result.
“State elections do happen but that does not alter the course of the central government or its mandate,” she said.
The Indian High Commissioner to the UK, Ranjan Mathai, highlighted some of the deals struck during the visit, marking a new era in the relationship.
“The civil nuclear agreement adds a new dimension to our engagement with the UK… India is on course to be a part of the global supply chain in the field of civil nuclear,” he said.
Britain has branded its relationship with India as “special”, largely as a result of the influential global Indian community in the UK. India and the UK are third highest sources of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) for each other and trade between the two countries grew from $12.6 billion in 2010-11 to $14.38 billion in 2014-15.
However, both governments and the business community believe the relationship can deliver much more in terms of jobs and growth for both countries. David Cameron on taking office in 2010 said the UK should be India’s “partner of choice” and has made three trips to India as British Prime Minister. A long-awaited reciprocal visit by Mr Modi finally came through this month.
The Policy India Summit was therefore, perfectly timed in the wake of this historic visit to explore the roadmap ahead, challenges and solutions.
CEO and founder of India Inc. Manoj Ladwa laid the groundwork: “Prime Minister Modi was the first Indian Prime Minister to visit the UK in nearly a decade, making this a historic and landmark visit. The relationship between India and the UK moved beyond the geographic boundaries of the two countries to look at opportunities to collaborate all over the globe.
“In this summit, we explored how best the key challenges and opportunities can be navigated to realise the immense potential of this relationship.”
Sanjeev Dhuna, partner at Allen & Overy, added: “The overall sentiment is that the business climate is changing in India and this summit comes at the right time to explore the opportunities.
“It is important to understand that the reform agenda will take time. What is key is that there is the determination and spirit to undertake those reforms.”
Some Highlights of the Modi Visit:
- Forthcoming economic and financial dialogue between the finance ministers. The role the City of London will now play in channelling investment into infrastructure projects in India, through the establishment of an India-UK partnership fund under the umbrella of the National Infrastructure Investment Fund (NIIF).
- Announcements by HDFC, Bharti Airtel, State Bank of India and Yes Bank to raise finance through the City of London, which also opens up the opportunity for the Indian private sector to raise capital for their investment and growth.
- A new Ease of Doing Business Partnership, including several different strands of work which will provide impetus to greater investments.
- The reconstituted India-UK CEOs Forum.
- Under the new UK-India Skills pledge, 11 UK companies have committed to support skills development in India.
- Together, the UK government and UK businesses will establish new “Centres of Excellence” in key sectors, starting with a centre for Automotive and Advanced Engineering in Pune.
- 2016 will be the UK-India year of Education, Research and Innovation.
- UK will be the partner country for the 2016 Technology Summit in Delhi.
- Smart cities, the establishment of new healthcare facilities and a ground-breaking completion of negotiations for a Nuclear Cooperation Agreement and the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on closer civil nuclear collaboration between the UK and India.
