London: The Labour Friends of India, a forum comprising of ruling Labour MPs to promote Indo-UK relations, has launched a "Progressive Business Group" to promote interactions by Indian and British companies with policymakers to help identify ways to step up bilateral trade and investment.

Over 200 MPs, union and business leaders were present at the launch function held at the House of Commons last night (March 15, 2004).

In a statement on the growing India-UK relations, Patricia Hewitt, Secretary of Trade and Industry, said, "The relationship is going from strength to strength. Increasingly, major British companies consider it critical to have a presence in a growing Indian market and equally Indian companies are finding the intellectual capital offered in the UK indispensable in developing their global presence."

Referring to the controversy over offshoring, Hewitt said while one could not ignore implications of the outsourcing of service sector work, protectionism was not the right approach in dealing with the issue.

"One more job in India does not mean one less job here. It means instead one less Indian family in poverty, one more customer for our goods. Not jobs lost, but opportunities found."