UK PM Boris Johnson is on a two-day visit to India (AFP)
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has expressed his support for more skilled visas for Indians as part of the efforts to expedite the ambitious free trade agreement (FTA) being negotiated between the two countries.
Speaking to reporters from the UK on the prime ministerial flight to Ahmedabad on Wednesday night, Johnson acknowledged a massive shortage of experts in IT and programming sectors and said Britain needed "hundreds of thousands" of workers with in-demand skills.
Here are the live updates of Boris Johnson's India visit:
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here Watch: Boris Johnson Visits JCB Bulldozer Factory In GujaratTearing through memes, wisecracks and criticism, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who is on a two-day India visit, on Thursday visited a factory of the British heavy equipment maker JCB at Gujarat's Halol industrial area near Vadodara.
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here UK PM Boris Johnson Favours More Skilled Visas For Indians: ReportBritish Prime Minister Boris Johnson has expressed his support for more skilled visas for Indians as part of the efforts to expedite the ambitious free trade agreement (FTA) being negotiated between the two countries.
Speaking to reporters from the UK on the prime ministerial flight to Ahmedabad on Wednesday night, Johnson acknowledged a massive shortage of experts in IT and programming sectors and said Britain needed "hundreds of thousands" of workers with in-demand skills. Read
here UK PM Boris Johnson Meets Businessman Gautam Adani
Boris Johnson Being Presented A Memento At Sabarmati Ashram In Ahmedabad
Boris Johnson India Visit Live Updates: 3 Major Points- UK PM Boris Johnson will announce a slew of commercial agreements.
- He will hold talks focussing on India-UK trade, investment and technology ties.
- UK and Indian businesses will confirm over a billion pounds in new investments and export deals, said British High Commission.
Live Updates: Boris Johnson's Message in Sabarmati Ashram Visitors' BookBoris Johnson's message in Sabarmati Ashram visitors' book: "It is an immense privilege to come to the Ashram of this extraordinary man, and to understand how he mobilised such simple principles of truth and non-violence to change the world for the better."
In favour of talented people coming to UK: Boris Johnson on visas
Speaking on the plane on his way to India, Boris Johnson signalled he was ready to be more accommodating on an issue that could have stalled the talks. "I have always been in favour of talented people coming to this country," Mr Johnson told reporters. "We are short to the tune of hundreds of thousands of people in our economy and we need to have a progressive approach and we will."
More UK visas for Indians?
Boris Johnson indicated he was ready to offer more visas to India in return for this year clinching a free-trade deal that could boost annual bilateral trade by billions of pounds, news agency Reuters reported.
Boris Johnson's Gujarat schedule
Boris Johnson will visit Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad later. He is also likely to meet with businessman Gautam Adani. Then the British Prime Minister will fly to Vadodara, where he will visit a plant of the heavy machine firm JCB. From there, he will go to Gandhinagar's Gujarat International Finance Tec-City or GIFT City. He will go to Delhi in the evening.
- Ahead of Boris Johnson's visit, the UK had said it would not look to "lecture" India over its neutral stance in the UN on the Ukraine war or India's decision to increase Russian oil imports. The UK, however, has been trying to persuade India to reduce its reliance on Moscow since Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24.
- His visit is likely to give a fresh push to the proposed free-trade agreement between India and the UK, boost cooperation in the Indo-Pacific and enhance defence ties.
- A major focus of Mr Johnson's talks with PM Modi would be on the situation in the Indo-Pacific as the UK is strongly opposed to any kind of coercion in the region.
India-UK defence ties
The UK is ready to help in realising PM Modi's vision of making India a hub for defence manufacturing and that the country was ready for the transfer of technologies for joint production of military hardware, news agency PTI reported.
Boris Johnson meeting with PM tomorrow
Boris Johnson will meet with Prime Minister Narendra Modi tomorrow. A major focus of Mr Johnson's talks with PM Modi will be on the situation in the Indo-Pacific as the UK is strongly opposed to any kind of coercion in the region.
Gujarat Chief Minister welcomes Boris Johnson
Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel said: