§ Sandra GidleyTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what trade deals were(a) discussed and (b) finalised during the Prime Minister's recent visit to India. [35860]
§ Mr. BradshawDuring the recent visit to India by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister a number of trade issues were discussed. He gave the keynote speech at the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) conference in Bangalore and signed the New Delhi Declaration with Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee which highlighted the success of the growth, to £5 billion a year, of bilateral trade since the Indo-British Partnership was introduced in 1993. The declaration stated that we will focus together on key sectors where we share world class expertise, such as IT and healthcare, and announced the plan by the CII and CBI to hold a major economic seminar in London in July 2002 involving senior CEOs from both countries, to look at the global challenges we face together and to explore future opportunities for enhancing the trade and investment relationship.
The Prime Minister discussed a number of defence and security matters while in India, including defence export opportunities. The Government continue to support the proposals that BAE Systems has made for the supply of Hawk jets to India.