Will the India-UK trade deal benefit Infosys? What’s the new controversy Rishi Sunak is facing?

British prime minister Rishi Sunak is embroiled in a new conflict of interest controversy over India trade talks, which includes his wife Akshata Murty, nearly two days after he “inadvertently” broke the code of conduct for MPs by failing to correctly declare his wife’s financial interest in a childminding company. The development comes only days before the G20 Leaders Summit in New Delhi, on 9-10 September. He attracted a fresh controversy because of claims that his family could profit financially from a post-Brexit trade deal he is negotiating with New Delhi. Question over trade deal benefitting Infosys Since January 2022, India and the United Kingdom have been working on a free trade agreement (FTA). Now in its 12th round of negotiations, as Sunak prepares for his first visit to India as British prime minister for the G20 Leaders’ Summit next month, several MPs and trade experts expressed their worries believing it would benefit Sunak’s wife Akshata Murty’s father’s IT business. According to media reports, Akshata Murty owns a £500 million (Rs 5,203 crore), stake in Infosys, a Bengaluru-based international IT services and consulting firm. Furthermore, the corporation wishes to obtain more visas in order to grow its operations in the United Kingdom. Some MPs also believe Infosys has influence over visa decisions in the UK. The Observer claims the Opposition Labour Party and trade experts are questioning the full financial impact as Infosys, the Bengaluru-headquartered software service major co-founded by Akshata’s father Narayana Murthy, stands to benefit from any such trade deal. [caption id=“attachment_13046052” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Some people say that Infosys has influence over visa decisions in the UK. AP[/caption] India and the UK have been negotiating an FTA, now in its 12th round of negotiations, as Sunak prepares for his first visit to India as British prime minister for the G20 Leaders’ Summit next month. “As the prime minister recently learned, it’s important he declares any interests properly. I expect him to do so in respect of the India trade deal too,” said Darren Jones, Labour MP and chair of the cross-party House of Commons Business and Trade Select Committee — which has been scrutinising the FTA talks. Infosys aims to improve its access to the UK Earlier this week, the UK parliamentary watchdog released its report into an inquiry concluding that Sunak had inadvertently failed to correctly declare his wife’s shares in childminding firm Koru Kids that stood to benefit from the government’s budget policy. The 43-year-old British Indian leader apologised for the “inadvertent” breach that arose “out of confusion”, and the matter was closed. According to the Observer report, Infosys — which has had contracts with the British government as well as many UK companies — is known to want to improve access to the UK for its thousands of contract workers through changes to the visa regime. Allowing more visas for its workers in sectors such as IT and artificial intelligence (AI) is claimed to be a “key Indian demand in the talks”. [caption id=“attachment_13046062” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Earlier this week, the UK parliamentary watchdog released its report into an inquiry concluding that Rishi Sunak had inadvertently failed to correctly declare his wife’s shares in childminding firm Koru Kids that stood to benefit from the government’s budget policy. AP[/caption] The newspaper claims that the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) has even warned the Business and Trade Select Committee against conducting a trip to India in the coming months to examine issues around a potential deal. “The committee was advised by the government that it would be better to visit India next year instead of during sensitive trade negotiations,” committee chair Jones told the newspaper. Shadow trade secretary Nick Thomas-Symonds said while his party backed a trade deal with India, it is important that Sunak is “transparent about any relevant business links and his personal role in negotiations”. India is pushing for a social security agreement Alan Manning, a professor of economics at the London School of Economics, told the newspaper that because software services are one of India’s biggest export sectors, India will naturally be looking for opportunities to grow them in their trade deals. “As the Prime Minister’s family may have a direct financial interest in any deal on immigration, he should recuse himself from this part of the negotiations to avoid any perception of conflict of interest,” said Manning. Meanwhile, The Sunday Times reports that India is prepared to cut tariffs on Scotch whisky and British cars and parts by at least a third if the UK is prepared to slash its workers’ tax to clinch an FTA. According to reports, New Delhi is pushing London to sign a social security agreement similar to deals it has signed with countries, including Canada, Australia and France, that could exempt Indian workers from social security contributions if they continue to make payments in India. “The social security agreement is a very important thing for us. It creates a lot of ill will if folks have to surrender a significant amount of their savings,” the newspaper quoted an Indian source as saying. The reports come as UK Business and Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch held bilateral talks with her counterpart, Piyush Goyal, in India during a visit for a G20 trade meet this week. Goyal said they discussed ways to “add further momentum” to the India-UK FTA negotiations for a “mutually beneficial deal”. With inputs from PTI