UK won’t relax visa rules for India, Starmer says

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has traveled to India, leading a large delegation of over 100 business leaders, academics, and cultural figures, with the goal of boosting UK investment and trade. Speaking before his arrival, Sir Keir emphasized the “massive opportunities” to improve commercial and cultural ties following the recent trade agreement signed in July. This new multi-billion-pound deal is set to make exports like UK cars and whisky cheaper to India, while Indian textiles and jewelry will be cheaper to send to the UK.

Despite the focus on improving economic relations, Sir Keir Starmer made it clear that the UK will not relax its visa rules for India. The Prime Minister, whose Labour government is actively trying to cut immigration levels, insisted that visas “played no part” in the recent trade agreement and that the situation remains unchanged. He stated, “The issue is not about visas… It’s about business to business engagement and investment and jobs and prosperity coming into the United Kingdom.” When asked about attracting top talent, such as tech entrepreneurs, he repeatedly confirmed there were no plans for new visa routes to India.

The visit has already yielded business announcements, with British Airways revealing plans for a third daily flight between Delhi and Heathrow, and Manchester Airport announcing a new direct route to Delhi. During his two-day trip, Sir Keir is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi. However, Sir Keir took a moment to distance himself from Modi’s recent actions, stating that he would “not be following suit” in sending birthday congratulations to Russian President Vladimir Putin. He also noted that the UK’s focus on oil purchases would be on combating Russia’s “shadow fleet” of unregulated oil tankers rather than directly criticizing India over its purchase of Russian oil.