Neil Alexander: Proposed whisky tax would hit Moray hard

Scotland’s national drink could soon cost more per dram.

As someone who does enjoy the occasional tipple, I’ll admit I’m biased but, nonetheless, I am very concerned for the impact this will have in my local area.

The SNP Conference in October is proposing a new tax on whisky, to “mitigate the impact of this cost of living crisis”. This would not only harm Scotland’s booming whisky industry but, closer to home in Moray, this will have direct consequences.

The Scottish whisky trade is one of our biggest assets in Scotland, with exports worth £4.51 billion in 2021.

To Moray, whisky is a key part of the barrel in our local economy. You don’t need to look far to see a distillery across our area, with the council listing 16 across the region. Every time I drive home from visiting friends and family, I am greeted by the sights of multiple distilleries. Elgin, and Moray are the home of Scottish whisky.

Whisky tax would hit Moray hard

The whisky levy motion has been penned by the Glasgow Southside branch of the SNP – Nicola Sturgeon’s own. How can a Scottish first minister not understand how important this trade is to us in Moray? Or has she turned a blind eye?

The tax may be presented as a consequence of the Tory-led cost of living crisis but, in real terms, it could mean Moray is hit even harder than other places. Distilleries would suffer the cost, and that could in turn impact local jobs.

And what about one of the biggest events in our calendar? The Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival. If the price per drink goes up, that could have a knock-on effect on the cost to host an event like this, and the number of tourists visiting our area could drop.

The Festival, which ran from 27th April to 2nd May, gave ticket holders exclusive access to world famous distilleries usually off-limits to the public, whilst allowing visitors to fully immerse themselves in the region and discover all that Speyside has to offer. pic.twitter.com/dlzNWCl0O2

— Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival (@spirit_speyside) May 9, 2022

There are far too many uncertainties and possible impacts for introducing this new whisky tax. The proposal should be scrapped before it ferments.

It’s just common-sense economics. If you take a massively exported product which is already highly taxed and tax it higher, it will impact your international exports as well as damage the local economies that have a great many jobs in the industry.

The levy proposal talks of a plan to “engage with all stakeholders”, but I can’t imagine a single distillery will nod happily at higher costs on their bottles.

As convener of the Moray Lib Dems, I am totally opposed to this unfair tax on the dram. It would hurt Moray, and we – and our local industries – deserve better.

Neil Alexander is a Liberal Democrat, a member of the Scottish Executive Committee for the Lib Dems, and a community councillor for Elgin

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