FTA negotiations with India 'well advanced', next round set to commence very soon: UK minister

London: Negotiations between Britain and India for an ambitious Free Trade Agreement (FTA) are “well advanced”, with the next round of talks set to commence very soon, a UK Foreign Office minister told peers in a debate in Parliament here, asserting that a strong deal could boost the country's economy.

Lord Tariq Ahmad, the UK Foreign Office Minister for South Asia, also said



Britain’s relationship with India is central to its foreign policy and as one of the world’s biggest economies it is a key partner.

Ahmad was responding to the debate entitled “The Importance of the Relationship Between the United Kingdom and India” in the House of Lords on Thursday, tabled by British Indian peer Baroness Sandy Verma.