Marcos sees stronger people-to-people ties between PH and UK

President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. said Saturday that he sees an increase in people-to-people exchanges between the Philippines and the United Kingdom, highlighting the two countries' strong relations.

Marcos made the statement during his meeting with UK Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Affairs David Lammy in Malacañang.

Marcos stressed the significant increase in Filipinos living and working in the UK, relaying to Lammy the gratitude of UK-based Filipinos for welcoming them.

"That's a very clear indication of how strong our relations have become in many, many areas. So, I'm sure your visit will be a symbol of that strengthening relationship," Marcos told Lammy.

According to information from the Presidential Communications Office, there are an estimated 200,000 Filipinos in the UK, who work in various sectors including IT, aviation, hospitality and service, and healthcare.

Further, a surge in the number of Filipino engineers and IT experts working with British telecommunications, software, and e-commerce solutions companies has been observed since 2001.

Lammy is in the country to promote the enhanced partnership between the Philippines and the UK.

Among the issues Marcos and Lammy discussed during the meeting are trade and investments, maritime, climate change, and the environment.

In a separate meeting, Lammy and Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo signed the Philippines-UK Joint Framework that is envisioned to chart the depth and direction of their Enhanced Partnership across various areas in the coming years.

"Today, we're charting a new course for our relationship amidst a lot of global volatility, and we must strengthen ties with like-minded partners, like the Philippines," Lammy said.

Manalo said they agreed to sustain cooperation on matters of pressing mutual concern such as defense and security, human rights, maritime, and economic resilience. — VBL, GMA Integrated News