Favouring offshoring to India, a visiting top UK minister has stated that companies in the UK and its economy would benefit from outsourcing.
Offshoring is beneficial to the UK economy. In general, outsourcing will help companies in the UK stay competitive, Ian Pearson, Minister of state for trade, investment and foreign affairs, UK, said addressing a press conference.
"In the era of globalisation, companies have to stay competitive. One of the ways to ensure this is to look at the processes and make it efficient. Companies in the UK invest in research and development, and other areas to remain competent and outsourcing is one option which will help them achieve efficiency," he said.
The UK government was making all efforts to help those who lost their jobs due to outsourcing, he said, adding that the UK government was preparing a report on outsourcing.
Stating that the Chennai-headquartered Scope International, the BPO arm of UK-based Standard Chartered Bank, was providing strong cost advantage for the bank, he noted that outsourcing was a business reality that would have to continue.
Indo British Partnership Network Chairman Karan Bilimoria said the delegation witnessed tremendous enthusiasm and confidence on the progress of future partnership between India and UK during its meeting with Indian officials and business community.
Pearson said India had huge manufacturing base, besides its software capabilities and that its expertise and capabilities in manufacturing was often undermined. Stating that he was impressed with the quality of work in Tamil Nadu, Pearson observed that there were possibilities for co-operation between UK and Tamil Nadu in areas like IT, automotive, healthcare and textiles.
On free trade agreement, he said the European Union was exploring possibilities with other regions regarding this. India will be a strong candidate in terms of future partnership, he added.
During his visit to India, Pearson met British exhibitors at the Autoexpo in New Delhi and will be addressing CII's Partnership Summit in Kolkata. He is accompanied by a 20-member business delegation that included senior executives from Standard Chartered Bank, Virgin Atlantic Airways and London Stock Exchange, among others.
