Kanishk Maheshwari, Co-founder & Managing Director, Primus Partners, shares his view on the UK’s proposed carbon tax and its implications for the India-UK Free Trade Agreement (FTA). He highlighted the need for India to engage in bilateral consultations to seek exemptions or compensatory provisions, potentially by invoking rebalancing clauses under the FTA. He also underlined the importance of developing a domestic carbon framework aligned with global norms to protect trade competitiveness.

He also recommended that Indian negotiators push for a 3–4 year extension in the UK’s carbon tax implementation timeline. In addition, he proposed introducing targeted incentives to support potentially impacted sectors and ensure the trade agreement delivers its intended benefits.