UK Chancellor of Exchequer urges better economic partnership with India

Mumbai, July 28 (ANI): Pressing for greater economic ties between the United Kingdom and India, George Osborne, the British Chancellor of Exchequer, said that there is an enormous scope and potential for investors in the two nations to forge bilateral trade partnerships for mutual benefit.

Launching a solar powered mobile handset made by Vodafone here on Tuesday, Osborne said: "It is a strong signal from a new British government... the relationship with India is very important for us. We want to enhance that relationship to our mutual benefit."

Asserting that the newly formed British government was keen on maintaining a fruitful relationship with India, Osborne reiterated that bilateral economic cooperation between the two nations was of critical importance in the aftermath of the global economic downturn.

The Chancellor of Exchequer, along with a delegation comprising the British Prime Minister, David Cameron and a spectrum of senior policy makers, business analysts and investors, is on his first state visit to India with a clear aim of boosting mutual economic development.

Earlier in the day, he also met several key executives of the Tata group to promote business ventures in Britain.

"I have just come from meeting some of the Chief Executives of the Tata group who are investing in Britain. So, this relationship between Britain and India is all about helping each other with our economic development, investing in each other, creating jobs in India and creating jobs in Britain," he said.

Osborne also invited Indian entrepreneurs, investors and service providers to set up base in Britain, while maintaining that British forms were keen on exploring the Indian markets too.

"My obligation as the Chancellor of Exchequer is to get value for money for the British taxpayer, just as the Indian government wants to get value for money for the Indian taxpayer. But I think there is a great opportunity to make sure that Indian businesses invest in Britain. They can offer IT (information technology) services and the British firms could offer IT services here in India. I think it's a mutual partnership," he said. (ANI)