Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with representatives of the spirit distillation industry in the UK on the support they require to switch production to the manufacture of santising products.

To meet the additional demand for hand sanitiser, the government has been supporting manufacturers by ensuring they have access to the denatured alcohol they need. Since the beginning of March, HM Revenue & Customs has fast-tracked the authorisation of over 3 million additional litres of denatured alcohol for hand sanitiser production.

However, in light of continuing high demand for the alcohol needed in these products, HMRC has worked proactively with the spirits industry on a series of easements to the current requirements. Under new measures announced on 23^rd March, distillers and gin producers that hold alcohol or alcohol waste within an excise warehouse may, without HMRC’s prior approval, use these products to produce hand sanitiser without the payment of excise duty, providing the final product meets the World Health Organization’s formulation for Handrub.

Further information on all the easements announced by HMRC to support hand sanitiser production can be found at:

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/producing-hand-sanitiser-and-gel-for-coronavirus-covid-19