UK welcomes Modi onto the world stage

Moments after it became known that Narendra Modi would be India′s next Prime Minister, David Cameron was the first European leader to formally congratulate him and officially invite him to visit the United Kingdom. Mr Modi accepted the invitation and the two leaders will soon meet to discuss how to build on the strong commercial foundation that characterises the special and long-lasting UK-India relationship.The BJP′s historic electoral success can be attributed largely to Mr Modi′s vision for moving India′s economy forward after years of stagnation and slow growth. Under Mr Modi′s leadership as the chief minister of Gujarat, his home state emerged as one of India′s most industrialised and prosperous states in which people saw greater government efficiency, more job opportunities and higher standards of living.Following the recent General Election, Indians across the country have every reason to believe Mr Modi will improve fortunes in each individual state. Upon being sworn in as India′s 15th Prime Minister, Mr Modi reiterated his commitment to modernise government processes to improve efficiency and the speed with which decisions can be made. This will be central to unlocking India′s enormous growth potential going forward. Additionally, Mr Modi has appointed only 45 people to serve as ministers in his new Government - a major decrease from the 71 Ministers in the previous administration - which confirms his vision for efficient and streamlined governance.UK businesses and investors should be excited about the opportunities to grow the UK-India trade relationship under India′s new government. The total value of bilateral trade between the UK and India grew by 6.6 per cent last year compared to the previous year, which demonstrates that David Cameron is delivering on his personal commitment to increasing the UK′s trade ties with India. While he has led Britain′s resurgence into one of the fastest growing western economies - as recently confirmed by the Office of National Statistics - David Cameron is encouraging UK businesses to target exports and investment into Indian sectors that could benefit from British products and expertise, notably in critical infrastructure as India looks to undertake its major national development programme.After the world witnessed India successfully deliver the greatest democratic exercise in modern history, this is a very exciting time for Indian diaspora populations around the globe, particularly in Britain. In my capacity as David Cameron′s UK Indian Diaspora Champion, I will continue mobilising the Indian population here to connect more closely with family and friends in India to assist the Prime Minister in getting bilateral trade levels up to a new unprecedented level.The UK business community should join David Cameron in welcoming Narendra Modi and his pro-business administration onto the world stage so that the UK and India can continue rising together in this global economy as successful and trusted partners.

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