This year has witnessed a transformation in the British public’s perception of India. The sub-continent is no longer a memory of Empire, nor a destination for travellers, nor even a market for budding exporters. India has proved itself a powerful and welcome inward investor in the UK.

This was nowhere more evident than in Solihull yesterday, where workers at the Ford plant signalled their support for Tata of India’s bid for Jaguar and Land Rover. Union officials said yesterday that they were impressed by Ravi Kant, the managing director of Tata Motors, who assured them that, if successful, the company did not intend to export UK-based jobs to lower cost factories in India. No doubt, the Ford workers have drawn comfort from the fact that the group made similar assurances when it bought Corus, the company that was previously known as British Steel. Tata’s name as a reliable investor will, of course, depend on the company honouring these pledges.

Tata may not be the ultimate buyer of Land Rover. The view of the unions will not count for much in deciding who ends up owning two of Britain’s greatest car brands. This is not a beauty parade, but an auction: One Equity Partners, which is a unit of JPMorgan and led by former Ford boss Jac Nasser, and Mahindra & Mahindra, another Indian carmaker, are also bidding for the businesses.

Ford’s financial troubles - it reported losses of $12.6 billion last year and is off-loading the British carmakers in order to focus on problems at home – meaning it will be most interested in price. But it cannot hope for much. People involved in the sale expect both businesses to fetch well below £1 billion. This may seem surprising, given the lustre of the brands and the recent revelations of the unexpected problems at Volvo and the unforeseen strength in the UK businesses.

But the support of the unions should have an impact on the buyers, if not the sellers. It should encourage Tata to see the race through. The Indian automaker has a compelling strategic logic for buying the businesses: it has an appetite for the engineering know-how and a growing domestic market for the product.

Companies are not countries. Businesses should not be slaves to national pride. But, sometimes, they can serve the national and international interest. This year, Tata has done just that, both as an ambassador for India – and globalisation. james.harding@thetimes.co.uk

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