Page 8 - Rishi Sunak

No place for Islam in Europe: Italy's Giorgia Meloni

India, UK to hold next round of talks for free trade agreement in Jan

India and the UK officials in January next year will hold the next round of talks for the proposed free trade agreement (FTA) to resolve remaining issues, the commerce ministry said on Monday. The 13th round of negotiations for the proposed pact was held between September 18 and December 15. "The UK and India will continue to negotiate towards a comprehensive and ambitious Free Trade Agreement. The fourteenth round of negotiations will take place in January 2024," the ministry said in a statement. These negotiations focussed on complex issues including goods, services, and investment. An Indian team was in London recently. Issues which need to be resolved include duty cuts on electric vehicles and whiskey and the movement of professionals. Talks are also progressing on the proposed bilateral investment treaty (BIT). India and the UK launched the talks for a free-trade agreement (FTA) in January 2022, to conclude talks by Diwali (October 24, 2022), but the deadline was missed due

Pound rises against euro as UK composite PMI hits a six-month high

Markets expect the BoE to start cutting interest rates from May, slightly later than the European Central Bank (ECB) or the Fed, which analysts say could support the pound

UK PM Sunak defiant after winning crunch vote amid Opposition attacks

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak presented a defiant front in Parliament on Wednesday after winning a crunch vote on the controversial Rwanda Safety Bill, even as the Opposition accused his government of being in meltdown. Addressing the last Prime Minister's Questions (PMQs) session in the House of Commons before Christmas recess, Sunak claimed that while the Conservatives remained focussed on cracking down on illegal migration the Labour Party was distracted by political tittle tattle, alluding to reports of divisions within the Tory ranks. The British people should decide who gets to come to this country not criminal gangs or foreign courts. That's what this bill delivers. We will now work to make it law so that we can get flights going to Rwanda and stop the boats, said Sunak. Labour Leader Keir Starmer accused the British Indian leader of kicking the can down the road after his Rwanda bill passed 313 to 269, with a majority of 44 votes, on Tuesday night in its first ...

UK PM Sunak survives crunch vote on controversial Rwanda policy

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Tuesday night survived a crunch vote in Parliament as none of his party MPs voted against the government's Safety of Rwanda Bill. The vote in the House of Commons passed by 313 to 269, a majority of 44 votes. Around 38 Conservative MPs were recorded as not taking part in the vote, with sacked Home Secretary Suella Braverman and resigned Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick believed to be among them. Earlier, Sunak had launched a charm offensive at 10 Downing Street in a bid to win over MPs from within his Conservative Party threatening to rebel against the bill, aimed at overcoming legal hurdles in the way of deporting illegal migrants to the east African nation. Ahead of the early-stage vote on the bill, Sunak hosted a breakfast summit for the Tory rebels on the extreme right of the party who are opposed to the bill because they feel it is not strong enough to circumvent legal challenges. However, more centrist Tories are against the toughest .

UK PM Sunak battles to unite divided Conservative Party in pivotal week

For Sunak, struggling to revive a weak UK economy and heavily trailing the main opposition party in opinion polls, the Rwanda policy has become the defining issue

PM Rishi Sunak's officials in Delhi to discuss India-UK FTA: Report

Senior officials from British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's team are in New Delhi this week to add momentum behind the ongoing round of negotiations for an India-UK free trade agreement (FTA), according to a UK media report on Saturday. The Guardian' newspaper reports that while there is no official comment from either side on such a visit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government is keen to finalise the FTA by the end of February before Sunak sets off on an expected general election campaign trail. Both countries are heading into an election year in 2024 and signing off on a trade agreement with India will bolster Sunak's electoral pitch to voters showing signs of anti-incumbency towards his governing Conservatives. The deal is still very much on and we think it is possible before both countries have their elections. Both sides are keen to get this done, an official close to the talks told the newspaper. The India-UK FTA talks began in January last year with Diwali 2022 set as t

UK PM Sunak fights back amid leadership turmoil over deportation policy

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Thursday launched a fight-back in favour of what he dubbed as the toughest anti-immigration law ever amid turmoil within the governing Conservative Party after a bruising Cabinet resignation and open attacks by backbenchers over his government's controversial policy to deport illegal migrants to Rwanda. Addressing a hurriedly organised press conference from Downing Street, the 43-year-old British Indian leader referred to his heritage as a child of immigrants to highlight how his family used the legal route before becoming proud British nationals. Illegal immigration undermines not just our border control, it undermines the very sense of fairness that is so central to our national character, said Sunak. We play by the rules, we put in our fair share, we wait our turn. That some people can just cut all of that out, you've not just lost control of your borders, you've fatally undermined the very fairness and trust on which our system is based, he

UK's latest Family Visa crackdown to impact many Indian family plans

The UK government's latest set of visa crackdowns to cut immigration figures includes a major hike in the minimum salary threshold for British nationals and permanent residents applying to bring family members to join them in the UK, a move expected to impact several Indian families. The Family Visa category, under which long-term UK residents are able to bring their spouses and partners to join them, until now required the applicant to be earning at least GBP 18,600 annually. From March/April next year, this threshold will jump to GBP 38,700, inevitably set to have a significant impact on applicants from the Indian subcontinent with Indians making up the second-highest cohort under the Family Visa in the past year (5,870) after Pakistanis (15,038), as per official Home Office statistics. We will ensure that people bring only dependants whom they can support financially, by raising the minimum income for Family Visas to the same threshold as the minimum salary threshold for skilled

UK PM Sunak announces steps to crack down on soaring immigration rate

Sunak described the new measures as the government's 'radical action' to bring down the immigration rate, adding the steps would ensure that immigration benefits the UK

India, UK seek to wrap up trade negotiations before busy election year

It's the 13th round of negotiations on a deal intended to expand a trading relationship that was worth more than $24 billion last year

Rishi Sunak's current polling worse than Truss with key UK voters

Just 59% of voters who backed the Conservatives under Boris Johnson at the 2019 election are sticking with the party under Sunak, the report found

UK govt intervenes in potential Telegraph takeover by Abu Dhabi-backed fund

Britain's government said on Thursday it has asked media and market competition officials to look into a potential Abu Dhabi-backed takeover of The Telegraph newspaper. Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer said she issued a public interest intervention notice after considering the possible impact of the offer by the investment fund RedBird IMI to the previous owners of The Telegraph and The Spectator magazine to repay debts owed by them. RedBird IMI a joint venture between RedBird Capital and Abu Dhabi's International Media Investments, and led by former CNN chief Jeff Zucker said earlier this month it agreed to provide loans to Britain's Barclay family and ensure the family's debts, worth some 1 billion pounds ($1.25 billion), are paid. The Barclay family owned the right-leaning newspaper and magazine before they were put into receivership. The family also previously owned London's luxurious Ritz Hotel before selling it in 2020. RedBird IMI has said it would provide a loan of up to 600

Greek PM Mitsotakis claims Sunak cancelled meeting over Elgin Marbles row

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has reportedly cancelled a planned meeting on Tuesday with his Greek counterpart, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, during a visit to the UK amid a deepening row over the return of the 'Elgin Marbles'. The ancient Greek sculptures from the Parthenon in Athens are among the controversial historic items which were brought to the UK by British diplomat Lord Elgin in the early 19th century giving them their English name. The Parthenon Sculptures now form part of the British Museum's collection and have long been demanded by the Greeks to complete their series at the Acropolis Museum in Athens. The latest standoff is reminiscent of India's demands for the Koh-i-Noor diamond and other historic artefacts taken from India during colonial times. Most recently, the Maharashtra government signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Victoria and Albert Museum for a three-year loan of a set of 17th century Tiger Claws', or wagh nakh, believed to have belonged to ..

Rishi Sunak hails huge vote of confidence in UK at Global Investment Summit

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Monday announced that the world's leading investors have committed GBP 29.5 billion in new projects and capital as a huge vote of confidence in the UK economy. The British Indian leader, who welcomed CEOs of some of the world's leading businesses for a Global Investment Summit at Hampton Court Palace in London, said that thousands of jobs will be created across the country, including tech, life sciences, renewables, housing and infrastructure. Blackstone, Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan Chase, Barclays, HSBC and Lloyds Bank are among those represented at the British Ideas Past, Present and Future entitled summit, to be followed by a reception at Buckingham Palace hosted by King Charles III. Today's investments, worth more than GBP 29 billion, will create thousands of new jobs and are a huge vote of confidence in the future of the UK economy, said Sunak. Global CEOs are right to back Britain we are making this the best place in the world to invest an

Nissan to invest $1.4 bn to make EV versions of its best-selling cars in UK

Nissan will invest USD 1.4 billion to update its factory in northeast England to make electric versions of its two best-selling cars, a boost for the British government as it tries to revive the country's ailing economy. The Japanese automaker manufactures the gasoline or gas-hybrid Qashqai and smaller Juke crossover vehicles at the factory in Sunderland, which employs 6,000 workers. Nissan Motor Co. said it's directly investing up to 1.12 billion pounds (USD 1.4 billion) to produce electric successors to the two models. The money also will enable wider investment in infrastructure projects and the supply chain, including a new gigafactory" for EV batteries at the site, the government said in a separate press release. Nissan's investment is a massive vote of confidence in the UK's automotive industry, which contributes 71 billion pounds a year to the economy, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said. Sunak visited the factory for the announcement, posing for photos with Treasury chief Jerem

Rishi Sunak gets small bump in opinion polls after crowd-pleasing tax cuts

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and the governing Conservatives are enjoying a small bump in the opinion polls after some crowd-pleasing tax cuts were announced in the Autumn Statement budget this week, it emerged on Friday. According to a YouGov survey for The Times' conducted after the budget was tabled by UK Chancellor Jeremy Hunt in Parliament on Wednesday, the popularity rating for the Sunak-led Tories rose to 25 per cent which is four points up from the previous week, the party's highest rating in recent weeks. The Opposition Labour continues to hold on to their firm lead, with no change to their 44 per cent rating. It is the highest rating since mid-September and only three points below Sunak's highest-ever rating last April, the newspaper analysis notes. "Labour still holds a commanding 19-point lead over the government, however, with the poll suggesting that most voters do not believe the measures announced by Hunt will make either themselves or the country materially

UK businesses grow for first time in three months, but high rates weigh

Britain's economy has suffered from the highest inflation rate among big, rich countries and gross domestic product failed to grow in the third quarter

UK govt cuts taxes to jam labour ahead of general elections next year

Hunt's most eye-catching announcement was a two percentage point reduction to the headline 12% rate of national insurance

'Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham': UK Opposition leader Starmer on FTA with India

The UK's Opposition Leader Keir Starmer has described the ups and downs of the government's negotiations towards a free trade agreement (FTA) with India as Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham' and committed the Labour Party to pursuing an "always happy" bilateral relationship. During his speech at a Diwali celebration in the Houses of Parliament complex in London organised by the British Indian think tank 1928 Institute last week, Starmer referenced the Bollywood box-office hit which translates as sometimes happy, sometimes sad. India and the UK are currently in the 14th round of FTA negotiations to enhance the GBP 36-billion bilateral trading partnership, with several expected completion points having passed. We will be rebuilding Britain's reputation on the international stage and that means a new strategic partnership with India, said Starmer. The Tories are working on a free trade agreement, I think. It's all a bit stop-and-start. In fact, you could almost call the negotiations Khabi Kushi