Scottish Goods: US Tariffs David Mundell (Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale
and Tweeddale) (Con) What steps she is taking to reduce tariffs on
the export of Scotch whisky to the US. John Lamont (Berwickshire,
Roxburgh and Selkirk) (Con) What progress she has made on the
removal of US tariffs on Scottish goods. The Secretary of State for
International Trade (Elizabeth Truss) My right hon. Friend has been
a huge champion for Scotch whisky. We have been working hard to
de-escalate this conflict and...Request free trial
Scottish Goods: US Tariffs
(Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale)
(Con)
What steps she is taking to reduce tariffs on the export of
Scotch whisky to the US.
(Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk) (Con)
What progress she has made on the removal of US tariffs on
Scottish goods.
The Secretary of State for International Trade ()
My right hon. Friend has been a huge champion for Scotch
whisky. We have been working hard to de-escalate this conflict and
get punitive tariffs removed on both sides of the Atlantic. That is
the way forward, not escalating this tariff dispute.
[V]
The Secretary of State has worked incredibly hard in
negotiating with the United States to try to find a bilateral
settlement to the Airbus-Boeing dispute to facilitate a deal with
the US. Of course she is aware of the significant damage that the
Scotch whisky industry continues to suffer, with export losses now
approaching a staggering £450 million. Will she reassure me that as
soon as possible after the new US Administration is in place, she
will urgently pick up negotiations on a deal to end tariffs? Will
she update the House, before that, on what support she requires
from other UK Government Departments to ensure that a deal is
agreed by the whole of the UK Government?
I completely agree with my right hon. Friend about the
urgency of ending this tariff dispute. I have been clear with the
United States and the European Union that we want to de-escalate it
and reach a negotiated settlement. This dispute has already been
going on for 16 years and has caused much damage. I am seeking an
early meeting with the new US trade representative, Katherine Tai,
and this will be one of the items on my agenda. I am also working
closely with the new Secretary of State for Business, Energy and
Industrial Strategy on this issue.
I know that everybody in Government is working hard on this,
but I want to reiterate the huge financial strain that the tariffs
are having on the textile and cashmere industry in my constituency
in the Scottish borders, which I fear will cost many local jobs.
Will the Government consider offering financial compensation to the
firms affected to protect local jobs and this industry?
My hon. Friend makes an excellent point. We are looking at
supporting industry, including through the BEIS fund that will
invest £10 million to help distilleries go green, and no doubt the
Treasury is looking at other affected industries as well. If we had
accepted the advice from Labour to put additional tariffs on US
products such as sweet potatoes and nuts, we would likely be hit by
more tariffs as Germany and France were, as announced on 30
December.
(Harrow West) (Lab/Co-op)
The Secretary of State has threatened to reimpose tariffs on
the United States if the Airbus dispute is not settled, but that
threat will only carry any impact if the US believes that we have
the legal authority to carry it out. Will she agree to publish the
UK’s legal advice or our exchange of letters with the World Trade
Organisation to prove that she is not bluffing and that we
genuinely have the authority to reimpose those tariffs if we need
to do so?
I am very clear that we have the authority to impose those
tariffs. We have acquired rights as a result of leaving the
European Union. But I go back to the point I was making: the hon.
Gentleman has advocated putting additional tariffs on products such
as sweet potatoes and nuts, so presumably he thinks that we have
those acquired rights.
