Ellie Costello and Eamonn Holmes entered a fiery debate with Labour MP Jonathan Reynolds following the UK’s trade deal with India.
GB News presenter Ellie Costello clashed live on air with Labour MP Jonathan Reynolds after the UK’s trade deal with India was announced. The news host grilled the Secretary of State for Business and Trade after Tuesday’s deal saw the exemption of some temporary Indian workers from national insurance payments. Jonathan claimed that the deal “would not undercut British staff” and pointed out similar deals with 50 other nations, including the US, Japan, and Canada. He also insisted that the agreement was “about us selling more to India” and was “not an immigration issue”.
Speaking on GB News, Ellie said, “Are you betraying British workers with this deal?” Jonathan dismissed the claim and replied, “Absolutely not!”
READ MORE: GMB hit with Ofcom complaints over Ed Balls ‘bias’ after Richard Tice clash [LATEST]
Jonathan was questioned live on air on GB News (Image: Getty)
He then added, “Let’s be clear: if you’re an Indian national in the UK and you apply for a job and a British person applies for the same job, you pay exactly the same tax.
“This is a very specific arrangement that already exists with around 50 other countries. It means that if you’re an Indian national temporarily seconded to the UK, or a UK national temporarily seconded to India, you don’t have to pay into both countries’ tax systems.
“If you’re a UK citizen working temporarily in India, you pay into the UK system. If you’re an Indian national working temporarily here, you pay into theirs. It simply makes it easier to move people between countries for short-term business purposes. But we would never agree to any deal that undercuts British workers or creates a two-tier tax system.”
Don’t miss…
BBC Breakfast halted as Sally Nugent and Jon Kay send sweet message to co-star [READ]
Prince Harry issues new statement just days after publicly trashing Royal Family [INSIGHT]
Amazon adds every series of binge worthy drama fans didn’t want to end
Trending
Ellie then hit back, “But for British businesses, if there’s no National Insurance to pay, won’t it be cheaper to hire Indian workers rather than British workers?
“And this is happening at a time when the Labour Government is trying to get more people into work. It just seems counterintuitive, doesn’t it?”
Jonathan responded: “No, that’s not the case. Again, no one is being undercut by this arrangement. It simply means UK nationals pay into our system, and Indian nationals pay into theirs, if they’re temporarily seconded for business mobility purposes.”
