Cross-party group of MPs urges greater priority be given for trade talks with India

The government must make it easier for Indians to come to Britain to secure a post-Brexit trade deal with one of the world’s fastest growing economies, a group of MPs have said.

Warning that Britain is falling behind in the global race to engage with India on its path to becoming an economic superpower, the Commons foreign affairs committee said ministers urgently needed to update their strategy on India and could not rely on historical links from the days of empire.

The cross-party group of MPs urged greater priority for post-Brexit trade talks with India, while calling on the government to facilitate the easy movement of people to come to Britain among priorities for improving relations.

Launched as parliament hosts a dedicated day on Indian relations at the start of UK-India week, celebrating the ties between the two countries, the group of MPs told ministers they must either ease migration rules or be honest that tough controls will kill off the prospect of a “global Britain” trading around the world after Brexit.

Leading Brexiters have used the idea of turning Britain into an outward-facing, global trading powerhouse among key arguments for leaving the EU. However, critics say the promise ignores the steps such a policy would require, including higher levels of non-EU migration and lower food safety standards.

“There is a tension between the FCO’s [Foreign and Commonwealth Office] promotion of a ‘global Britain’ and some wider government efforts to reduce net migration,” the foreign affairs committee says in a report.

“While the global Britain strategy is barely being communicated in India, the ‘hostile environment’ message is being heard loud and clear.”

The Conservatives have maintained a pledge to bring down annual net migration to Britain to the tens of thousands, from about 258,000. In the period since the Brexit vote, net migration has gradually fallen, fuelled by less EU migrants arriving than in the past. Non-EU migration has, however, risen steadily over the past five years.

More than 1 million people of Indian heritage live in the UK. However, the report said skilled workers, students and tourists find the migration system hard to navigate, expensive and unwelcoming.

“Facilitating the movement of these groups is inseparable from the goal of increasing trade with India. We are concerned that government policy has been driven by the single-minded objective of reducing net migration,” the report says.

Britain has lost ground in attracting Indian students and tourists to other countries, while the UK has plunged from being India’s second-biggest trade partner in 1999 to its 17th.

Tom Tugendhat, the Conservative chair of the foreign affairs committee, said: “India is an essential partner to the UK. Our relationship and the living bridge of people who link our nations will only become more important.

“The government needs to make sure the UK is making its support for India clear, reawakening the ties between us and building bridges that are made to last.”