Following Brexit, UK businesses and universities are looking to strengthen ties beyond Europe, and have set their eyes on India.
In collaboration with Middlesex University London, the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) recently released a set of reports entitled ‘Bridges to the Future’, showcasing how British businesses, universities, and their Indian counterparts can form successful partnerships together.
CBI director general Carolyn Fairbairn said following the EU referendum, “strong global links and being open to the brightest and best are vital”.
“Universities encapsulate these endeavours. Built on shared opportunity and a need for openness the higher education links between India and the UK include some of the strongest and fastest-growing partnerships between our two countries,” she wrote in the foreword.
The UK is currently India’s largest G20 investor and employer, with more British universities partnering up with Indian institutions to “provide new and innovative study opportunities” for India’s students.
Another CBI report found that 535 UK companies currently employ around 691,000 people across India, totalling 5.5 per cent of all organised private sector jobs in the country.
The UK also gains from trade relations between the two nations: around 800 Indian businesses collectively invest more in the UK than in the rest of Europe.
As for universities, India has long-recognised the qualityof UK higher education, and more than 2,000 academics with Indian nationality work in British institutions.
Commenting on the report, David Williams, Middlesex University’s director of corporate development said that India has a growing middle class with “an appetite for higher education”, as well as institutions that have a desire for links with world-renowned UK universities.
“Our work with the CBI has come at a critical time for British universities who need more than ever to be global, to form partnerships, and to keep pace with the ever-changing skills needs in the business world,” he said.
The report names various collaborations between companies and universities in the UK and India, using them as case studies supporting the benefits of further partnerships.
It also suggests several areas which show the most potential, such as research in science, technology, and innovation; improving teaching and learning quality; digital learning technologies; and internationalisation.
Moglai Bap and Mo Chara of Kneecap perform at Glastonbury Festival at Worthy Farm in Pilton, Somerset, Britain, June 28, 2025. REUTERS/Jaimi Joy
Police may probe anti-Israel comments at Glastonbury
BRITISH police said they were considering whether to launch an investigation after performers at Glastonbury Festival made anti-Israel comments during their shows.
"We are aware of the comments made by acts on the West Holts Stage at Glastonbury Festival this afternoon," Avon and Somerset Police, in western England, said on X late on Saturday (28).
Irish hip-hop group Kneecap and punk duo Bob Vylan made anti-Israeli chants in separate shows on the West Holts stage on Saturday. One of the members of Bob Vylan chanted "Death, death, to the IDF" in a reference to the Israel Defense Forces.
"Video evidence will be assessed by officers to determine whether any offences may have been committed that would require a criminal investigation," the police statement said.
The Israeli Embassy in Britain said it was "deeply disturbed by the inflammatory and hateful rhetoric expressed on stage at the Glastonbury Festival".
Prime minister Keir Starmer said earlier this month it was "not appropriate" for Kneecap to appear at Glastonbury.
The band's frontman Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh was charged with a terrorism offence last month for allegedly displaying a flag in support of Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah at a concert in November. He has denied the charge.
A British government minister said it was appalling that the anti-Israel chants had been made at Glastonbury, and that the festival's organisers and the BBC broadcaster - which is showing the event - had questions to answer.
Health secretary Wes Streeting said he was also appalled by violence committed by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank.
"I'd also say to the Israeli Embassy, get your own house in order in terms of the conduct of your own citizens and the settlers in the West Bank," Streeting told Sky News.
"I wish they'd take the violence of their own citizens towards Palestinians more seriously," he said.
(Reuters)