English Whisky: Single Malt Definition Debate
Full Debate: Read Full DebateDepartment: Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Tim Farron
Main Page: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)Department Debates - View all Tim Farron's debates with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
English Whisky: Single Malt Definition
Tim Farron Excerpts(2 weeks, 5 days ago)
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Stephen Morgan
My hon. Friend will have heard what I said at the outset about protecting Scotch whisky going forward. A number of issues and concerns were raised on my very enjoyable visit to Aberdeenshire in August, and I can assure him from the Dispatch Box that I will continue to engage with the sector to understand issues and concerns to ensure that the sector continues to flourish.
Tim Farron (Westmorland and Lonsdale) (LD)
English whisky rightly has a growing reputation, and it is right that it should have geographical indication status. I confess to being a single malt enjoyer myself, as well as the owner of a decent collection, including a fine bottle of Lindores. I am also an avid supporter of the annual Kendal whisky festival, where Cumbria whisky distilleries proudly tout their wares alongside whiskies from all parts of the British Isles, and indeed beyond.
So English whisky is good, and English whisky from the lakes is even better. However, DEFRA’s proposed criteria for English whisky are not good, nor is the tiny appeal period on that status. To put it bluntly, English whisky is too good to be held to this low a standard. It will damage the English whisky brand and, in turn, impact on the brand and reputation of Scotch whisky, along with whiskies from Wales and Ireland.
It is also quite wrong for this consultation and the appeal period to be open for only two parliamentary sitting days. Without this urgent question from my hon. Friend the Member for North East Fife (Wendy Chamberlain), there would have been no parliamentary scrutiny of this at all, and even with this question, the appeal period is far too brief or fair to be adequate. I urge the Minister to think again.
Stephen Morgan
I know that this is an issue that the hon. Member has been trying to address with colleagues in the Department, and I thank him for his correspondence on these matters. I stress that GI status provides a powerful platform for producers to strengthen their brand, attract investment, access new markets and compete internationally on the basis of quality, provenance and authenticity. The decisions that this Government have made will go a long way to supporting the industry in his constituency. I am very alive to the issues that he has described and will take them back to the Department.