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The Prime Minister has stated that the truce deal in Gaza "could not have happened without the leadership of Donald Trump," but stopped short of supporting the US president for a Nobel peace prize.

Ceasefire Deal Welcomed as a "Relief to the World"

Starmer remarked that the initial stage of the deal would be a "welcome news globally" and highlighted that the United Kingdom had contributed significantly in private discussions with the United States and mediators.

Speaking on the last day of his trade visit to India, Starmer emphasized that the agreement "needs to be put into action in full, without postponement, and paired with the prompt removal of all restrictions on life-saving humanitarian aid to Gaza."

Nobel Prize Inquiry Answered

But, when asked if the Nobel prize committee should now grant Trump the coveted prize, the Prime Minister implied that time was needed to determine if a durable peace could be achieved.

"What matters now is to press on and execute this ... my focus now is moving this from the phase it's at now ... and make a success of this, because that is important to me more than anything else," he told reporters at a press conference in Mumbai.

Business Deals Revealed During India Visit

The Prime Minister has celebrated a number of deals finalized during his visit to the country – his maiden visit there – joined by 126 business leaders and arts figures. The trip marks the implementation of the countries' trade pact.

• No 10 has announced a range of financial commitments, from fintech to higher education facilities, as well as the production of multiple Indian movies in the United Kingdom.
• On the final day, the Prime Minister signed a defence deal worth £350 million for UK missiles, manufactured in the UK region, to be deployed by the Indian army.

"The shared history is profound, the human connections between our people are truly special," Starmer said as he departed the city. "Building on our landmark agreement, we are reinventing this partnership for our times."

Digital Identification System Examined

The Prime Minister has dedicated time in India analyzing the national digital identification program, including meeting key figures who designed the widespread system utilized by more than 1 billion people for social services, transactions, and identification.

He suggested that the United Kingdom was considering broadening the scope of digital ID beyond making it mandatory to verify eligibility to work. He indicated that the Britain would in time look at connecting it to banking and transaction networks – on a optional basis – as well as for official procedures such as mortgage and educational enrollments.

"It has been adopted on a optional basis [in India] in massive scale, not least because it ensures that you can retrieve your own funds, make payments so much more easily than is available with alternative methods," he explained.

"The speed with which it allows citizens here to access services, particularly banking options, is something that was recognized in our discussions recently, and actually a Fintech conversation that we had as well. So we're looking at those examples of how digital identification assists individuals with processes that sometimes take excessive time and are too cumbersome and simplifies them for them."

Public Support for Changes

Starmer acknowledged that the administration had to build public support for the initiatives to the UK citizens, which have plummeted in public approval since Starmer announced them.

"I think now we need to go out and advocate for the huge benefits ... And I believe that the more people see the benefits that come with this ... as has happened in other countries, people say: 'That will simplify my daily routine,' and therefore I want to proceed with it," he stated.

Rights Issues and International Relations Addressed

Starmer said he had raised a range of challenging issues with the Indian leader regarding human rights and ties with Russia, though he appeared to have made minimal progress. Starmer confirmed that he and Modi discussed how India was continuing to purchase Russian oil, which is facing widespread western sanctions.

"For both Prime Minister Modi and me the focus on ending this conflict and the various steps will be taken to that purpose," he commented. "This included a wide range of dialogue, but we did set out the actions that we are undertaking in relation to energy."

Starmer also mentioned he had raised the case of the UK-based activist Jagtar Singh Johal, from Dumbarton, who has been detained in an Indian jail for almost a decade without facing a full trial. It is frequently mentioned as one of the most egregious cases of injustice among Britons currently detained overseas.

However, Starmer did not indicate much advancement had been made. "Indeed, we did raise the consular cases," he stated. "We always raise them when we have the opportunity to do so. I should say that the top diplomat is scheduled to meet the families in the near future, as well as raising it today."

Upcoming Initiatives

Starmer is largely anticipated to take a comparable trade-focused visit to the People's Republic of China in the next 12 months as part of a mission to ease relations between the UK and China.

That relationship is under the spotlight because of the dismissal of a espionage investigation, said to have happened because the British authorities has been reluctant to provide fresh evidence that China is considered a threat.

The Prime Minister said the UK was keen to explore additional commercial partnerships but stated that a commercial agreement with China was not on the agenda. "It is not a priority, for a bilateral pact as such, but our position is to cooperate where we can, challenge where we must, and this has been the consistent policy of the government in regarding China."