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UK and India agree trade deal – PM refuses to scrap cuts to winter fuel payments – India launches missile attacks 

Grab yourself a coffee and let us break down the news in the UK this morning – it’s time for your daily dip into the headlines. From Westminster to the weather (yes, it’s raining again!) to sports and entertainment, regardless of whether you’re commuting or couch-bound – here are the stories you need to know.

A lot is happening this morning with India launching missile attacks on Pakistan dominating many of the online headlines. The attack comes after a terrorist attack on tourists which India blames on Pakistan. At least 18 people have been killed and Pakistan has vowed to respond to the strikes. 

Closer to home, the UK and India agree trade deal after three years of talks. The PM says the deal will massively boost the UK economy. 

The PM might be hoping that the trade deal will serve as a bit of a distraction as backlash grows over Labour’s refusal to U-turn on the cuts to the winter fuel payments. Labour MPs are saying that the government’s refusal to U-turn played a huge role in Labour’s losses in last week’s England local elections – and say more losses will come if change doesn’t come soon. 

In sports, all eyes will be on tonight’s Champions League match which will see English club Arsenal head to Paris to face PSG, they have to overturn a 1-0 deficit. The winner will face Inter Milan in the Champions League final after the Italian giants knocked out Spain’s Barcelona. 

UK and India agree trade deal

UK and India agree trade deal

CliffNotes

  • UK and India agree trade deal after more than 3 years of talks
  • It will be easier for the UK to export whisky, cars and other products to India
  • PM says deal will boost UK economy

UK and India agree trade deal

What Happened

UK and India agree trade deal after more than 3 years of talks. The UK-India trade deal will make it easier for UK firms to export whisky, cars and other products to India, and cut taxes on India’s clothing and footwear exports.

PM Keir Starmer says the deal would boost the UK economy and “deliver for British people and business” whilst also reporting the landmark agreement did not include changes to any immigration policy. 

What does the deal include? 

Lower tariffs on 

  • Clothing and footwear 
  • Cars
  • Foodstuff products including frozen prawns
  • Jewellery and gems 

The UK government also emphasised the benefit to the UK economy and job creation from UK firms expanding exports to India. 

UK exports that will see levies fall include: 

  • Gin and whisky
  • Aerospace, electricals and medical devices
  • Cosmetics
  • Lamb, salmon, chocolates and biscuits 
  • Higher value cars 

Indian reaction to trade deal 

India’s PM Narendra Modi called the deal a “historic milestone” that was “ambitious and mutually beneficial.” 

The pact would help “catalyse trade, investment, growth, job creation, and innovation in both our economies”, he said in a post on social media platform X.

What Comes Next 

Once it comes into force, which could take up to a year, UK consumers are likely to benefit from the reduction in tariffs on goods coming into the country from India. 

Last year, trade between the UK and India totalled £42.6bn and was already forecast to grow, but the government said the deal would boost that trade by an additional £25.5bn a year by 2040.

India is the world’s fifth-largest economy and is expected to become the third-largest within a few years, making it a desirable trading partner for the UK – currently the world’s sixth-largest economy. 

The UK is also a high-priority partner for India, which has an ambitious target to increase exports by $1 trillion by 2030. 

Reactions From The Media 

  • The Daily Telegraph leads with the Tory criticism of the deal – which exempts Indian workers in the UK from paying National Insurance for three years. The paper says it amounts to a “two-tier tax deal” and quotes Nigel Farage as saying the agreement “betrays working Britain.”
  • The Daily Mail says the deal will make it cheaper to employ foreign workers and Dehli has heralded it as an “unprecedented win.” 
  • The Times says the agreement is worth up to £5bn for the British economy but also undercuts UK workers. It says ministers have pointed to similar deals the UK already has with the US and Europe and that it would also benefit British workers in India. 
  • Indian Express says Modi said he was delighted to speak to “friend PM Kier Starmer” whilst reporting the deal will ‘significantly enhance commerce, generate new job avenues’.
  • CNBC says the growing protectionism of the US may “ironically” help other countries forge closer economic ties as seen with the UK-India deal. The paper notes that ASEAN and China are to meet later in the month to negotiate improvements on a free-trade deal. 

India launches missile attacks on Pakistan

CliffNotes

  • India launches missile attacks on Pakistan 
  • 14 people have been killed so far 
  • India blames Pakistan for a terrorist attack last month 
  • Pakistan denies involvement 
  • Pakistan says it will respond 

India launches missile attacks on Pakistan and Pakistan-administer Kashmir

What Happened

India has launched missile attacks on Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir. So far, at least 19 people have been killed and 38 injured.  Pakistan says it has shot down five Indian air jets. 

The airstrikes come following a deadly attack on tourists in the Indian-administered portion of Kashmir last month. Indian authorities say they have evidence linking the attack to Pakistan-based militants with external support – Pakistan rejects such a claim and says they had no involvement in the attack. 

What Comes Next 

The details of the attack are still emerging, with varying reports on how many separate attacks have taken place, how many injuries and the death toll. 

Pakistan has said Islamabad will respond “at a time and place of its choosing,” meaning it will take a great diplomatic push to stop this from escalating into a war. 

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif labelled the attacks acts of cowardice whilst saying: 

“Pakistan has the right to fully respond to the Indian-imposed military action, and a befitting response is being given

“The entire nation stands with the Pakistani armed forces.”

Reaction From The Media

  • Al Jazeera says the attacks have prompted fears the neighbours are on the brink of war.
  • The Daily Mail reports Russia’s foreign ministry that it was deeply concerned about the deepening military confrontation between India and Pakistan and that it called for both countries to show restraint.
  • Daily Express reports “fighting has erupted between the two nuclear-armed nations” with Pakistan’s PM declaring it an ‘act of war’.
  • The Guardian reports at least eight people, including a child, have been killed and 35 injured after India launched attacks on what it claimed were nine sites of “terrorist infrastructure” inside Pakistan.
  • The Telegraph says “For all the martial messaging from Delhi, careful language has pointed not to open runaway conflict, but to a history of tit-for-tat action and managed confrontations.”

PM refuses to scrap cuts to winter fuel payments

CliffNotes

  • PM refuses to scrap cuts to winter fuel payments
  • It comes despite massive Labour losses at local elections
  • Labour MPs worried say its ‘rolling out red carpet for Reform’
  • Wes Streeting says no review of the change but ministers ‘reflecting’ on election results

PM refuses to scrap cuts to winter fuel payments – ‘rolling out red carpet to Reform’

What Happened 

The government says it will not reverse cuts to winter fuel payments despite the measure causing turmoil in the party. Since last week’s local election losses for Labour (and huge gains for Reform), there have been growing calls within the party for the cuts to be abandoned. 

The prime minister’s spokesperson has said there “will not be a change to the government’s policy.” He says the move to restrict who is eligible for the payments was required to “ensure economic stability and repair the public finances”.

What Comes Next 

It’s not too clear. Heath Secretary Wes Streeting insisted the winter fuel policy was not being formally reviewed but did say that ministers were “reflecting on what the voters told us” at last week’s elections, where Labour lost around two-thirds of the council seats it was defending.” 

The issue was one of the major issues during last week’s local elections which saw Labour lose 187 council seats. One thing is clear, if changes don’t come soon, Labour can expect to lose more ground to Reform. 

Money Expert Martin Lewis said: “Reports Government may partially U-turn on the Winter Fuel Payment cut by raising the effective eligibility threshold from £11,500. That’d be welcome but still doesn’t fix the worst underlying problem… the means testing mechanism (ie to get it you must claim Pension Credit) is flawed.”

Reactions From The Media

  • Daily Mirror reports the prime minister’s refusal to scrap cuts to winter fuel payments is like “rolling out the red carpet to Reform,” according to one Labour MP.
  • The Daily Express calls it “Labour turmoil” after the prime minister ruled out a U-turn on cutting winter fuel payments for OAPs. The paper says it comes despite Wes Streeting admitting that the cuts were an issue for the party at local elections last week. 
  • The i says small changes to the cuts will “not be enough to win back voters” Labour MPs warn the PM. An insider tells the paper that the policy had been like “kryptonite” on the doorstep. 
  • The Express reports Reform pledges to restore winter fuel payments ‘straight away’ by slashing foreign aid.
  • The National Scot reports money expert Martin Lewis has hit out at an apparent plan by the UK Government to rethink its controversial Winter Fuel Payment cut.

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