Scottish government calls for Scotch whisky legal guards in Brexit negotiations to protect £4bn industry
The Scottish government is calling for protections for the country’s whisky industry in UK-US trade talks after Brexit.
Economic secretary Keith Brown has asked the UK government for EU laws governing the multi-billion pound industry to be written into UK laws after Brexit.
“The US made clear in the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership discussions that they would support a relaxation of the definition of whisky, which would open the market up to a number of products which do not currently meet that standard,” he said.
Read more: Scotch whisky exports increase £79m in first quarter
“Whisky is a product which is worth around £4bn to Scotland in exports. It is vital that we continue to have robust legal protection of Scotch whisky, which is why I have sought clarification from the UK government as to whether Scotch whisky featured in discussions during last week’s trade visit by the secretary of state for international trade. I am also demanding that the current EU regulations are guaranteed post-Brexit.”
The trade secretary Liam Fox this week visited Washington to lay the groundwork for trade talks with President Donald Trump’s administration.