UK Asian Voice | 15th October 2016
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Mayor to meet Indian businesses to show London is open to global investment Sadiq Khan is due to meet with leading Indian businesses on Wednesday, to explore opportunities to attract further investment and to reassure leaders them that London is open for business. The Mayor is hosting a meeting at City Hall with 17 leading Indian foreign investment companies already working with London to discuss further expanding their links with the capital following the European Union referendum result. Names include: Air India, HCL Technologies, Hiranandani, ICICI Bank, Infosys, Lalit London, Tata, Usha Martin Group, Asian Business Association, Wipro, CII to name a few. He will also reassure bosses that Indian businesses, who employ nearly 50,000 people in the capital, remain welcome postBrexit and that London is open to investment, trade and talent from around the globe. The Mayor is keen to further strengthen ties as Indian companies are the second biggest foreign investors in London. According to data from the Mayor’s promotional company, London & Partners, in the last 10 years, London has attracted more foreign direct investment from India than Japan and China
and only the US invests more in our capital. India is also a crucial trading partner for London and a significant market for the capital’s businesses, with the value of London exports to India amounting to £1.29bn in 2014. Sadiq Khan said: “London is open for investment and business from around the globe and the city already has an excellent trading relationship with India. “I am looking forward to meeting with leading Indian businesses to reassure them that our great city remains open to the best global talent, and I’m keen to discuss how we can strengthen and support further investment in London.” Both the Confederation of Indian Industry and UK Business India Council will be represented at tonight’s meeting, which will be chaired by Rajesh Agrawal, Deputy Mayor for Business and Enterprise. Shuchita Sonalika, Head and Director of the Confederation of Indian Industry, said: “Nearly 40 per cent of the fastest-growing Indian companies investing in the UK are based in London, highlighting that London has been the destination of choice for Indian FDI. Their diverse operations range from IT,
financial services, media and entertainment, tourism and others. “We hope that London will continue to be an attractive place to do business and their interests will be fortified post-Brexit. This interaction of Indian companies with Mayor Sadiq Khan is testament to that effort and CII looks forward to working with the Mayor’s team to deepen business links between India and London.” Kevin McCole, Chief Operating Officer of the UK Business India Council, said: “Indian business contributes hugely to London, and London businesses contribute hugely to India. So, at this time of uncertainty due to Brexit, the UK India Business Council is delighted that the Mayor and his Deputy have taken the time to hear the views of Indian businesses in London, and, quite rightly, to remind them that London is open for business.” To further strengthen business links between London and India, London & Partners will open applications for the next round of its India Emerging 20 (IE20) initiative, a programme to discover some of India’s most innovative and high growth companies with global aspirations. Last year’s competition saw more than 10 times as
Amber Rudd’s policy that never was Never before has the Conservative Party Conference caused a nationwide furore, but that's what happened when Home Secretary Amber Rudd unveiled plans for companies to publish the number of non-EU staff employed by them with the possibility of “naming and shaming” firms. "I come here today with a warning to those that simply oppose any steps to reduce net migration. This government will not waver in its commitment to put the interests of the British people first. Reducing net migration back down to sustainable levels will not be easy. But I am committed to delivering it on behalf of the British people,” she told the conference. "The test should ensure people coming here are filling gaps in the labour market, not taking jobs British people could do. So I many applications as places from companies all over India and across the life sciences, technology and professional services sectors. The final 20 companies selected for the programme will be given the opportunity to come to London to meet and learn from senior business leaders, venture capital investors and decisionmakers from major global companies.
want us to look again at whether our immigration system provides the right incentives for businesses to invest in British workers,” she added. Ms Rudd also announced a further crackdown on illegal immigration through new powers to go after landlords, employers and banks. Within hours of the speech, she faced a backlash from politicians and businesses alike with Labour saying it will "fan the flames of xenophobia and hatred in our communities" and the SNP called it "the most disgraceful display of reactionary right-wing politics in living memory”. Business leaders described the policy as divisive and damaging. Among animosity, the public accused her of being racist, to which she hit back saying "don't call me a racist" for talking about immigration. Days later Education Secretary Justine Greening said the Government's proposal to
make companies reveal the numbers of foreign workers they employ would not be made public. Speaking on ITV Greening said “This is not data that will be published. There will be absolutely no naming and shaming. This is about informing policy, so that we understand particularly which areas and parts of the country there are skills shortages, evidenced by the fact employers are not taking local workers as much as they might do.” In the midst of the storm, Steve Hilton the former director of strategy for David Cameron called on Amber Rudd to be removed from her position as Home Secretary following her comments on immigration. Appearing on ITV's The Agenda Hilton said: “Theresa May needs to send a really clear signal to the world that this idea - that has been noticed around the world of forcing companies to name and shame foreign workers - was a mistake. A powerful way to do that would be to move the minister who made the announcement... I think it's important to correct this mistake because it has had a big impact on Britain's reputation around the world.” After over a week in the storm, Amber Rudd dropped her proposal as the government did a U-turn.
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