Alex Ellis, the British High Commissioner to India is at the India Today Conclave Mumbai 2022 In Short

• UK-India relations is one of continuity and change, says Ellis
• ‘We cannot see a world in which the UK thrives without India thriving’
• It is a matter of court, says Ellis on extradition of Vijay Mallya

Rishi Sunak is of Punjabi descent and a Hindu but his heart and mind are British, said Alex Ellis, the British High Commissioner to India. He was speaking at the India Today Conclave Mumbai 2022.

“The modern UK is quite a diverse place and PM Sunak got to the top because he is a capable man and it shows how talent can drive,” Ellis said on Rishi’s elevation as PM and the changes in race relations in the UK.

Speaking on UK-India relations following Brexit, the ambassador said that it is one of continuity and change and the course was set when we left the European Union, it is a much more geopolitically tense world and we have opportunities for migration and trade policies and there were good relations between Boris Johnson and PM Narendra Modi that continued with Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak.

“We cannot see a world in which the UK thrives without India thriving. There is a mutuality of interest that will get tighter in the future,” Ellis said.

On the Free Trade Agreement, he said that “FTA delivers growth and jobs in both our countries. Negotiations are tough and we have got through the majority of them. We trekked the valley and we have to do short and steep ascents. I think there will be a push and the two PMs when they spoke agreed this is one of the main aims for the next few months. We want more access to the Indian market for high-quality UK products that will benefit UK consumers and will like the mobility of workers between the two nations,” he added.

On migration policies, he said that both countries have migration policies and want to attract talented people and make sure it is balanced by rules and restraint people who do not respect the law and the legal right to remain and that is true of any country around the world.

On questions about the extradition of Vijay Mallya and Nirav Modi, he said “this is no longer a government matter and the extradition had been signed three years ago. It is a matter of court. We do not want the UK to be a place for fugitives and the wheels of justice turn slowly, but they do turn.”

Speaking on the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, Ellis said that we had thought days of territorial aggression were over in Europe, but it is not and it is part of the more contested geopolitical world we live in. “The UK has been supporting Ukraine in defending its territory as we can not allow autocratic coercion of a neighbor to flourish. We can not allow President Putin to thrive by invading his neighbours,” he said.

When asked about belligerent nuclear threats from Moscow, Ellis added that the fact we are about is is is extraordinary. “My great worry is Putin’s regime is playing a terrible game. Threatening nuclear war, and blocking grain supplies are deeply serious issues and we can not allow such games to be played. We also see that this affects the world with energy prices, fertiliser prices soaring across the world. What we are doing is allowing the world to defend itself from unjustified military invasion.”