UK companies think India is complex, 'regulatory heavy': London Mayor

Londons Lady Mayor Dame Susan Langley on Wednesday said that companies in the UK still do not understand India well, and the country still seems to be regulatory heavy to them. Langley also runs a campaign to tackle disinformation about London and to showcase how the city remains a safe place to work, live and invest despite rumours to the contrary on social media.

London's Lady Mayor Dame Susan Langley on Wednesday said that companies in the UK still do not understand India well, and the country still seems to be ''regulatory heavy'' to them. Langley, on a visit to India, said one of the objectives of her trip is to identify projects and opportunities that the UK can invest in. There are huge opportunities for the two countries to work together, she said. Langley is only the third woman to hold the Lord Mayor's office in its 837-year history and the first to go by the title 'Lady Mayor'. She is also the chair of the insurance company Gallagher UK. ''I think people (in the UK) don't understand India and how to access the Indian market and the opportunities and the huge growth stories,'' Langley said in an interview with the PTI. ''When they have a choice of where to expand and where to increase, India is still sometimes, to some of them, a bit of a mystery. It still seems a bit complex, you know, regulatory heavy,'' she added. The best way to counter this impression is to bring case studies back, because case studies are stories, Langley said. ''You teach by stories, by saying X has been successful, or we just did this, and these are the opportunities. So, that's one of the key objectives of this visit...to deepen the relationships between the two of us and talk about what we can do together,'' Langley said. On the India-UK free trade agreement, Langley said it is a platform to build upon, especially in services sector. On the India-UK Infrastructure Financing, an initiative launched in September 2023, the lady mayor said its focus is on areas like fintech, innovation, biotech, green finance, transition finance, and education. Langley also runs a campaign to tackle disinformation about London and to showcase how the city remains a safe place to work, live and invest despite rumours to the contrary on social media. There is an active disinformation campaign against London, she said. ''So, can I say that London is one of the safest cities in the world? It is safer than any US state or major city. It is safer than most European capitals. Every city, Mumbai, Delhi, has a level of crime, but for London, it is one of the lowest,'' she said. Earlier in the day, Langley also met Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.