A Deal of Empire and Irony

The India-UK Free Trade Agreement marks a historic reversal of roles that could usher in a new era of commerce and cooperation.

The wheel of history, like trade, is forever in motion. A little over seventy-five years ago, Indian merchants bent to the will of British rule, their trade routes subject to colonial diktats. Today, in an ironic reversal, a Britain diminished in global stature and eager for post-Brexit deals, has inked a landmark Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the very nation it once ruled for nearly two and a half centuries. The symbolic value is as potent as the economic one.

Signed on May 6, the long-awaited FTA between India and the United Kingdom is, in many ways, a post-imperial handshake not just between two economies, but between two epochs. The former master, now mired in political flux and economic recalibration, has turned to a rising India not just as a partner, but as a necessary ally. The fact that the deal was brokered under the leadership of Labour’s Keir Starmer adds an unexpected layer of political finesse to a saga long stalled by the Conservative government’s indecision and internal wrangling.

The road to the agreement has not been smooth. For a decade, talks meandered with little to show. Under the Conservatives, the FTA had become a political football batted back and forth with promises of ‘global Britain’ that rang increasingly hollow. It took Starmer’s more pragmatic and less ideological approach to bring clarity where there had been confusion. He cut through the noise and pushed through a deal that had languished on the desks of policymakers for years. In doing so, he has signalled to Britain - and Europe - that Labour can govern with strategic intent.

In India, too, the FTA is being hailed as a diplomatic and economic triumph. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government has long sought to reposition India as a global trade hub, and Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal has deftly negotiated terms that protect India’s interests in agriculture, fashion and food - three sensitive sectors where liberalisation could have triggered domestic backlash. Instead, the final deal reflects cautious optimism.

The benefits are expected to flow in both directions. For India, the agreement will boost exports in sectors ranging from automobiles to beverages, while giving its services sector - a global leader in IT and consulting - a firmer footing in the British economy. For the UK, the FTA offers a lifeline: a chance to tap into India’s growing consumer base and to demonstrate that Brexit does not mean economic isolation. In a world where Donald Trump’s tariff wars have rattled global commerce, the India-UK agreement feels like an overdue note of rationality.

There is poetic justice in the sight of Britain signing a trade deal with the former colony it once treated as a market to be plundered. “The sun never set on the British Empire,” the old saying goes. But now, one might argue, it rises from the Himalayan foothills, and this time on Indian terms.

Some in Britain’s Parliament have grumbled. The opposition benches, particularly those still wedded to the idea of ‘Fortress Britain,’ have raised familiar alarms about sovereignty and domestic industry. But Starmer, to his credit, has stood firm. He has framed the agreement not as a capitulation, but as a modern partnership between two democratic nations - an example of post-colonial maturity rather than political nostalgia.

More importantly, the deal could be a harbinger for broader change. As Britain breaks new ground with India, other European nations may soon follow. Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, has already signalled renewed interest in India-EU trade ties. But where Brussels dithers, London has acted. The India-UK FTA may become a template that smaller European economies could replicate to gain access to one of the fastest-growing markets in the world.

Indeed, what makes this agreement significant is not merely the bilateral benefits, but the precedent it sets. It is a reminder that globalisation need not be defined solely by the dictates of great powers. Emerging economies like India can negotiate on their own terms, confident in their growth trajectories and diplomatic leverage. For Britain, it is a lesson in humility, but also in opportunity: post-Brexit realignment does not have to mean retreat, if pursued with clear-eyed purpose.

The FTA is not without its caveats. Trade deals are only as good as their implementation. While both governments have celebrated the agreement, it will take months (if not years) for the effects to be fully realised. Regulatory harmonisation, dispute resolution and non-tariff barriers remain thorny areas. Moreover, political winds can shift: protectionist pressures in either country could slow progress, especially in sensitive sectors.

Still, the fact that a deal was reached at all after years of false starts and frayed tempers is itself worthy of cautious applause. It demonstrates that free trade, though battered by populism and geopolitical friction, still has champions. And it proves that democracies, even those with colonial baggage, can find common cause when economic interest aligns with political will.

As Keir Starmer turns the page on a decade of Conservative chaos, he may well go to bed, as Robert Frost wrote, with “miles to go before I sleep.” But if this FTA is any indication, the direction of travel is finally clear. The former empire has made peace with its past and, in doing so, may have secured a more promising future.

(The author is a researcher and expert in foreign affairs. Views personal.)