New Delhi: The India-UK free trade agreement is Britain’s most “economically significant” FTA, and will boost its GDP more than other post-Brexit FTAs with Australia, New Zealand, and the 12-member Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), according to the June 26 House of Commons Library Research Briefing.
“UK GDP is forecast to be 0.13% higher (£4.8 billion) in the long run as a result of the agreement. This is a larger boost to GDP than the other post-Brexit FTAs negotiated from scratch (Australia, New Zealand and CPTPP),” the briefing said, citing data from an impact assessment done by the UK’s Department for Business & Trade (DBT). The House of Commons Library Research Briefings are considered impartial and fact-checked analysis to help lawmakers make informed decisions. CPTPP members are Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the UK, and Vietnam.
According to the UK government’s impact analysis, India’s GDP will, in turn, receive a 0.06% boost, equivalent to £5.1 billion per year in the long run. By 2035, the UK is projected to be the world’s sixth largest economy and India is projected to be the third, it added.
The research briefing emphasised the need for an effective implementation of the agreement’s provisions as the India-UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) is scheduled to be operationalised from July 15.
Officials from both sides are engaged in fine-tuning operational issues, setting up processes and finalizing necessary documentation so that businesses from both sides can take full advantage of CETA from day one, people aware of the development said, asking not to be named.
Union commerce minister Piyush Goyal, who was in the UK last week to supervise CETA’s implementation, announced in London on June 26 that around 1,000 people will be deployed across India as advisors to help businesses maximise the benefits of the deal. The UK government has also launched an outreach programme to ensure that British businesses are fully equipped to take advantage of CETA. DBT’s outreach activity has already engaged over 7,000 businesses and their representative bodies for CETA, the people mentioned above said.
The research briefing said that British business organisations were broadly in favour of the agreement. “The National Farmers’ Union welcomed certain aspects of the agreement but was critical of others. It was pleased with the increased opportunities to export lamb but raised concerns about the dairy sector,” it added. India considers dairy a sensitive sector, and has ring-fenced it from most trade deals.
The UK government described the agreement as “the best deal that any country has ever agreed with India” and argued that it would help boost the economy, the briefing said. “The government has emphasised the importance of India to the UK,” it added. There is a strong “living bridge” with nearly two million people of Indian heritage living in the UK. India’s economy is already the fifth largest in the world and is expected to be the third largest by 2028, it said.
Citing the UK government, the report said the deal provides certainty for business which will encourage investment and give UK businesses access to a wider pool of talent. It added that nothing in the deal is expected to have a long-term impact on net migration.
The report said there is no investment chapter in the FTA. “There have been negotiations for a Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) between India and the UK. In November 2025, trade minister Sir Chris Bryant said these negotiations had not yet concluded,” it added.
It is expected that the two countries will negotiate a BIT after CETA is operationalized, the people cited above said.
