TRADE Minister Ivan McKee has said the damaging impact of US trade tariffs will be felt across Scotland.
Speaking at the Scottish Parliament yesterday, he said the 25% tariffs on goods including Scotch whisky, biscuits and woollen and cashmere products will have a direct impact on businesses.
US President Donald Trump has been a vocal proponent of imposing tariffs on foreign goods.
McKee said: “Trade disputes may seem far removed from most people’s day-to-day lives, but the impact of these tariffs on Scottish businesses, and potentially on people’s jobs, is immediate and real.
“Single malt Scotch whisky, cheese, butter, cashmere, and sweet biscuits including shortbread, are targeted by the tariffs.
“This is profoundly worrying for Scottish producers exporting, or planning to export, to the US.”
READ MORE: Ministers respond to Scotch whisky tariff war with Trump
He warned that the impact of the tariffs will be felt across the country, “from the villages of Speyside to the west coast island distilleries and the textile manufacturers of the Borders”.
McKee added: “These US tariffs have seen Scotland caught up in a trade dispute not of our making. They have a direct impact on Scottish businesses, but post-Brexit tariffs with the EU would multiply the scale of this impact on the Scottish economy.
“Our healthy current trade with the US shows that we do not need to leave the EU to trade successfully with the US. We can increase our exports to 25% of our GDP in the next 10 years, but Scotland’s voice must be heard and our interests represented in future trade deals.”
The World Trade Organisation gave the US permission to impose tariffs on up to $7.5 billion of EU goods, as a 15-year battle over European subsidies given to plane-maker Airbus continues.
READ MORE: SNP pledge law to protect NHS from Donald Trump and Boris Johnson
Scottish Conservative MSP Dean Lockhart claimed Scotch whisky and other vital sectors could be prevented from becoming collateral damage in wider trade disputes after Brexit.
“The only reason Scotch whisky and other sectors are being hit with US tariffs is because we are still members of the EU,” he said.
“And because in this trade dispute, the EU has prioritised the interests of European aerospace, French champagne and other European sectors at the expense of Scotch whisky.
“The reality is that after Brexit, we will be free to negotiate our own free trade agreements with the rest of the world. We can then prioritise the interests of Scotland’s whisky, fishing, agricultural and other vital sectors.”
Rhoda Grant, Labour’s finance spokeswoman, said the US sanctions did not come as a surprise: “[The US] have shown that they’re not reasonable and our economy will be at their whim if we become too dependent on that trade,” she said.
“Therefore, should Brexit happen, we need to retain very close relationships with the EU.”
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel