Inviting companies to set up shops in the country, the UK on Wednesday said that it is not interested in restricting outsourcing and would promote overseas investment. 

"We are not interested in restricting outsourcing and there is no interest from our side to make it difficult ...for companies who operate here, we want to make it easier for companies to come to the market, set up their business and employ people," First Secretary and  Head of UK Trade and Investment (North India) Paul Grey told reporters on the sidelines of a FICCI function in the Capital.

In recent times, there has been increasing criticism about outsourcing in many developed markets like the US and the UK, especially in the wake of huge job losses due to sluggish economic activities.

Promoting the UK as an investment destination, Grey said, "Indian IT companies are already promoting themselves very effectively, (offering) good quality, low cost (services) which is an excellent combination at the moment because we have our own challenges to reduce spending in the UK."

The UK is the No 2 market for Indian software services, with the region comprising about 18 per cent of the over USD 60 billion Indian IT-BPO market, Grey said.  The US, which is the biggest contributor to the sector, has a 60 per cent share.

Most Indian software exporters, including TCS, Infosys and Wipro, have significant presence in the outsourcing market in the UK. Major work is outsourced from areas like government, utilities and banking and financial services.

Also, with growing IT spend by companies and government, these companies along with global players like IBM are in constant competition for multi-million dollar projects in the UK.

"UK remains still very open in that sense. We don't want to make it difficult for companies who operate here, we want to make it easier for companies to come  to the market, set up their business and employ people," Grey said.

In the UK, our philosophy is to keep market open and to get the best companies from around the world for supplying goods and services in the UK, he added.