Britain 'open' to outsourcing, says Cameron

British Prime Minister David Cameron on Wednesday said his country is "most open" to the idea of outsourcing.

"In terms of being open to outsourcing, you will find Britain one of the most open and progressive countries," he said in reply to a query on IT outsourcing.

"We are reviewing contracts, we are looking at what we pay for the services we have received," he said when asked about the decision to review some of the outsourcing contracts. "It is like any other business," he added.

Country's biggest software exporter TCS has been contracted to run Britain's employment savings trust at a cost of about pound 600 million.

TCS contract had come in for criticism from certain British websites. www.moneymarketing.co.uk had quoted Conservative's shadow pensions minister Nigel Waterson as saying, "he is amazed that contract would be signed so quickly and stressed that this would not inhibit a Tory review of the scheme if they get into power".

According to Nasscom chief Som Mittal, about 18 per cent of IT, BPO and engineering services revenues comes from Britain.

The British premier's comment differs from the US President Barack Obama's stated policy against outsourcing. As promised in the run-up to election, Obama had ended years of tax incentives to the US companies, which create jobs overseas in places like Bangalore through outsourcing.