Rachel Reeves told to come back to Scotland and say sorry to whisky sector
Graham Leadbitter, SNP MP for Moray West, Nairn and Strathspey, called the Chancellor's visit to a distillery last Thursday a 'missed opportunity to right Labour's wrongs' as Scottish whisky producers face 'extreme pressure' from Trump's tariffs and Labour's National Insurance employer contribution rise.
His comments come after the Prime Minister suggested at PMQs on Wednesday that the trade agreement with Trump would benefit the industry, despite the 10% tariff on whisky exports to the US remaining unchanged and potentially rising to 25% by 2026.
READ MORE: Keir Starmer announces Rwanda-style plan to deport asylum seekers
Leadbitter said: 'The Chancellor's visit to Scotland last week was a missed opportunity to right Labour wrongs and to apologise for the damage she has levelled on the Scotch Whisky industry.
'She should return to Scotland, apologise to the sector, and reverse the economically illiterate tax hikes imposed on our national drink by successive Tory and Labour UK governments.'
Analysis from the Scotch Whisky Association found that the 2023 Tory tax raises on whisky led to a £300 million loss in revenue for the Treasury.
Reeves imposed further hikes on the sector in the 2024 Budget in the form of changes to National Insurance contributions.
READ MORE: Scottish Labour donor warns national insurance hike will fuel job cuts
Leadbitter added: 'Labour has been no friend to the Scotch Whisky industry, or the thousands of jobs it supports in constituencies like mine, but support for the sector is even more important now with Trump tariffs wreaking havoc and harming exports and investment.
"Labour, the Prime Minister and the Chancellor appear to have absolutely no understanding whatsoever of the challenges this sector faces — and even worse, they seem not to care. That was exposed again during PMQs yesterday.
'The Chancellor does still have the opportunity to do the right thing — she should take it, or another Scottish industry will be left to suffer by Labour's hands.'
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