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The Prime Minister has asserted that the truce deal in Gaza "could not have happened without President Trump's leadership," yet avoided endorsing the US president for a Nobel Prize.

Ceasefire Deal Hailed as a "Relief to the Globe"

Starmer remarked that the first phase of the deal would be a "relief to the world" and highlighted that the United Kingdom had contributed significantly in private discussions with the US and negotiators.

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

Nobel Prize Inquiry Addressed

However, when questioned if the Nobel prize committee should at this time grant Donald Trump the coveted award, the Prime Minister suggested that time was needed to know if a durable peace could be achieved.

"What matters now is to move forward and execute this ... my attention now is moving this from the stage it's at now ... and make a success of this, because that matters to me more than anything else," he told reporters at a media briefing in India's financial capital.

Business Deals Announced During India Visit

The Prime Minister has hailed a series of agreements finalized during his tour to the country – his maiden visit there – joined by over a hundred executives and arts figures. The visit signifies the passing of the countries' trade pact.

• No 10 has announced a range of financial commitments, from financial technology 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 military agreement worth £350 million for British-made missiles, manufactured in Northern Ireland, to be deployed by the Indian military.

"The shared history is profound, the human connections between our citizens are truly special," he said as he left Mumbai. "Building on our historic trade deal, we are reinventing this partnership for our era."

Digital ID Initiative Examined

The Prime Minister has spent time in India analyzing the Indian digital ID system, including consulting key figures who designed the widespread system used by over a billion individuals for benefits, payments, and identification.

He hinted that the UK was considering broadening the scope of digital identification beyond making it compulsory to prove rights to work. He proposed that the Britain would in time look at linking it to banking and transaction networks – on a voluntary basis – as well as for administrative tasks such as home loan and school applications.

"It's been taken up on a optional basis [in India] in huge numbers, partly because it ensures that you can access your own funds, conduct transactions so much more conveniently than is possible with others," he noted.

"The efficiency with which it enables residents here to access services, especially financial services, is something that was acknowledged in our discussions yesterday, and actually a Fintech conversation that we had today. So we're looking at those instances of how digital ID helps people with procedures that often take excessive time and are too cumbersome and makes them easier for them."

Public Support for Reforms

Starmer admitted that the administration had to make the case for the initiatives to the British public, which have plummeted in popularity since he proposed them.

"In my view now we need to go out and make that case the significant advantages ... And I believe that the more people see the benefits that come with this ... as has occurred in other countries, people say: 'That will make my life easier,' and consequently I want to proceed with it," he stated.

Rights Issues and Global Affairs Discussed

Starmer confirmed he had brought up a number of difficult topics with the Indian leader regarding human rights and relations with Russia, though he seemed to have made little headway. Starmer acknowledged that he and Prime Minister Modi talked about how India was persisting to purchase oil from Russia, which is facing widespread western sanctions.

"For both Prime Minister Modi and me the priority on ending this conflict and the various steps will be implemented to that purpose," he said. "This included a wide range of dialogue, but we outlined the actions that we are undertaking in regarding energy."

The Prime Minister additionally said he had brought up the situation of the British Sikh activist Jagtar Singh Johal, from Dumbarton, who has been held in an Indian prison for almost a decade without facing a complete legal process. It is frequently mentioned as one of the worst examples of unfair treatment among Britons currently detained abroad.

But, he did not indicate much progress had been achieved. "Indeed, we did raise the consular cases," he said. "We always raise them when we have the chance to do so. I should say that the top diplomat is scheduled to meet the relatives in the near future, as well as discussing it now."

Future Plans

The prime minister is widely expected to take a comparable trade-focused visit to China in the next 12 months as part of a mission to ease relations between the UK and the Asian nation.

That relationship is receiving attention because of the dismissal of a espionage investigation, reportedly occurring because the UK has been unwilling to provide fresh evidence that China is considered a security risk.

The Prime Minister said the United Kingdom was keen to explore additional commercial partnerships but emphasized that a commercial agreement with China was not currently planned. "That's not on our list, for a bilateral pact as such, but our position is to work together where we can, challenge where we need to, and that's been the consistent policy of the administration in relation to China."