British PM praises Modi during debate in House of Commons

London, 19 November 2014

Replying to Indian-origin Labour MP Keith Vaz in the House of Commons on Monday on his recent first meeting with Modi in Brisbane, British Premier David Cameron described Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a “man with a clear vision” and praised him for breaking the deadlock over the trade facilitation agreement (TFA) at the WTO.

Cameron said, “We discussed the need for the EU-India free-trade agreement to get going again and for structural reform in India to help open up her economy and lead to higher growth rates.

“…I am clear that Prime Minister Modi is a man with a clear vision for doing economically for his country what he succeeded in doing for Gujarat.”

Noting that he had a “very good meeting with Prime Minister Modi”, Cameron praised the Indian leader stating “Modi got the conference off to a good start by agreeing to lift India’s block to the Bali trade facilitation agreement, which is vital to helping drive global growth”.

While raising the issue, Vaz pointed out “The summit marked the first face-to-face meeting between the Prime Minister (David Cameron) and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.”

On the question of bilateral trade, Cameron said Britain is the second-largest inward investor in India but more could be done on trade.