Keir Starmer is banking on deals signed with the South Asian nation in Mumbai to create jobs back home
Prime Minister Keir Starmer has said that a set of major deals signed during his ongoing two-day trade visit to India can create upwards of 7,000 new jobs in the UK.
Indian investments are expected to boost British industries such as next-generation electric motorbikes, semiconductor development, and agricultural innovation, the British prime minister’s office said in a statement on Wednesday.
“This is the biggest trade mission that the United Kingdom has ever sent to India,” Starmer said on Wednesday. “Obviously, this is a two-parter. We had [Indian] Prime Minister [Narendra] Modi over to the United Kingdom earlier this year to sign the FTA that we agreed and today is the return leg of that… That FTA is really important for us, it’s the biggest deal we’ve struck since we left the EU.”
Starmer is leading a delegation of 125 business leaders, cultural figures, and university heads, with the aim of increasing investment in Britain and stimulating its sluggish economy.
“64 Indian investors have confirmed their confidence in the UK as a business destination by collectively investing £1.3 billion ($1.7 billion) into some of Britain’s most thriving businesses – demonstrating the impact the UK-India trade deal is already having on investor confidence,” the prime minister’s office said.
A multibillion-dollar free trade agreement was signed between India and the UK in July, reducing tariffs on several British goods, making them cheaper for Indian consumers. The deal is touted to increase the UK’s gross domestic product by $6.4 billion each year, according to the BBC.
India is already a major investor in the UK with 1,197 Indian-owned companies operating in the country and generating combined revenues of $96.4 billion in 2025, according to data from management consultancy firm Grant Thornton.
On Thursday, Starmer met Modi, discussing the need to cooperate in critical areas such as climate and energy, including breaking away from “dependence on fossil fuels,” according to a BBC report.
Starmer, who is dealing with anti-immigration sentiment back home, said on his flight to Mumbai that the UK will not ease visa restrictions for Indian citizens.
The UK is struggling with its highest unemployment rate in four years, with over 1.67 million over the age of 16 unemployed.
