UK-India Trade in Services: Challenges and Opportunities Roundtable
By Kealan Finnegan
This week, in partnership with the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore (IIMB), the UK India Business Council (UKIBC) hosted a roundtable in London to discuss UK-India Trade in Services. IIMB have conducted a study, funded by the Department for International Trade (DIT), aimed to identify opportunities as well as challenges to increasing bilateral services engagement between India and the UK.
The three-part study involved both qualitative and quantitative approaches. In the study, IIMB examined sector-specific barriers and challenges for the following sectors: publishing; broadcasting and audio visual; logistics; business services, including but not limited to, engineering, R&D, public relations and space services; distribution services; and IT services.
Among the barriers discussed were infrastructure, skills, FDI, trade and tax policies, data protection, government procurement policies, multiplicity of regulations and sub federal issues. UKIBC invited sector experts to participate in the conversation and share their company’s insights. The companies provided feedback on the findings of the report identifying gaps and areas that needed expanding, including the pending NT12 legislation and data localisation bills. This work is highlighted in our Advocating Business Success in 2020 report.
UKIBC has been working with the Indian and UK governments to resolve these barriers to enhance bilateral trade and investment relations. Both governments are keen to undertake immediate steps through industry and government initiatives in selected areas like training, skills, trade facilitation, and investment in start-ups.
We believe there are many complementarities in strengths and interests between the UK and India, but the potential remains untapped. UKIBC plays an important role in communication and advocacy between the two governments. We anticipate many more conversations around UK-India trade in services and will continue to lead the conversation around the ease of doing business between the UK and India.
For more details on our trade in services roundtable, subscribe to our monthly newsletter by emailing comms@ukibc.com.
