The UK's push for lower import duties on goods like Scotch whisky and electric vehicles is another sticking point in the deal.
There are residual issues over investment protection, social security agreements and market access for British apples and cheese among others.
India and the UK have completed 13 rounds of FTA negotiations to enhance their estimated £38.1 billion annual trading relationship.
Total bilateral trade between India and the UK increased to $20.36 billion in 2022-23 from $17.5 billion in 2021-22.
The India-UK talks for the proposed free trade agreement (FTA) began in January 2022 but the 14th round of talks stalled as the two nations stepped into their general election cycles.
The UK's push for lower import duties on goods like Scotch whisky and electric vehicles is another sticking point in the deal.
There are residual issues over investment protection, social security agreements and market access for British apples and cheese among others.
Labour Party had criticised the Conservatives for "over-promising and under-delivering" on the UK-India FTA and declared it is "ready to go" on finalising the deal if elected.
Shadow foreign secretary David Lammy said the FTA should be "a floor not a ceiling" for the partnership and aims to have it done by the end of 2024 if Labour wins the election.
India and the UK have completed 13 rounds of FTA negotiations to enhance their estimated £38.1 billion annual trading relationship.
Total bilateral trade between India and the UK increased to $20.36 billion in 2022-23 from $17.5 billion in 2021-22.
So far, new FTAs have only been agreed with Australia and New Zealand, and those deals have riled British farmers. Talks with Canada were “paused” earlier this year, with the two sides unable to reach an agreement on issues around food safety standards.
(You can now subscribe to our
(You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel
Soon after Labour Party's Keir Starmer took charge of the government in Britain, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal has confirmed that the much-awaited Free Trade Agreement between UK and India is set to close very quicky, reported The Financial Times."Past discussions showed the two sides were pretty much on board on most of the issues we have discussed, and that a deal may close very quickly," said the Commerce Minister to The Financial Times.Read More: India-UK FTA: Dynamics set to change after Starmer-led Labour Party's election victory? Commenting further on FTA dicussions, the Minister urged the UK side to not repeat a mistake made by Boris Johnson when the then-prime minister promised in early 2022 that a trade agreement could be finalised within six months.The development comes after Prime Minister Narendra Modi and newly-appointed UK counterpart Keir Starmer held telephonic discussion after the latter won the elections with a landslide victory. "Discussing the Free Trade Agreement, the Prime Minister said he stood ready to conclude a deal that worked for both sides," said UK government in a statement.Read More: Prioritising India-UK ties, FTA in focus under new PM Keir Starmer Moreover to resolve the pending issues and to close the negotitations, senior officials of India and the UK are all set to hold the next round of talks this month. The India-UK talks for the proposed free trade agreement (FTA) began in January 2022 but the 14th round of talks stalled as the two nations stepped into their general election cycles.
