Business
Trump meets Scottish First Minister John Swinney to discuss whisky tariffs
First Minister John Swinney has met President Donald Trump in the Oval Office to discuss whisky tariffs.
The meeting took place in the Oval Office, where the President was accompanied by Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Mr Swinney says he discussed the possibility for a better tariff deal for Scotch whisky.
A 50-minute meeting took place ahead of the US President’s State Visit to the United Kingdom next week.
The First Minister confirmed to Mr Trump he would attend the State Banquet at Windsor Palace.
He said: “With the US state visit to the UK just days away, we are now entering the critical days on which hopes of a better tariff deal for Scotch whisky rest. Scotch whisky holds a unique position, as it can only legally be produced in Scotland.
“During my discussions with President Trump, I made the case to reduce the tariffs on the Scotch whisky industry – something the US industry supports.
“The United States is the largest market for Scotch whisky but Scottish distillers also spend hundreds of millions of dollars every year buying Bourbon casks from Kentucky.
“The negotiations themselves are, of course, for the UK negotiating team but given whisky exports to the US were worth almost £1 billion in 2024, its importance to the Scottish economy cannot be underestimated and I am determined to do all that I can to protect and safeguard this iconic Scottish product.”
The First Minister also raised the international situation including the ongoing conflict in Gaza and Qatar.
Mr Swinney is in the United States to undertake a series of trade and political meetings involving both main US political parties.
In a video posted to X, he confirmed he had met Mr Trump and discussed whisky tariffs, in particular, the possibility of no tariffs on Scotch whisky.
He said: “I wanted to share an update on my visit to Washington, DC. I spent the morning with representatives of the whisky industry from Scotland and the United States and we discussed the zero-for-zero approach on tariffs, which would help the industry to flourish on both sides of the pond.
“I’ve now taken those arguments to the Oval Office to President Trump, and we’ve had a constructive discussion about the reasons why Scotch whisky would benefit from no tariffs.
“It’s all part of my job to make sure that Scotland’s interests are promoted at all times, and that’s what I’ll always do as First Minister.”
The meeting at the White House was scheduled to last around 30 minutes and took place at 7pm UK time.
Prior to the meeting at the White House, the First Minister met representatives and member companies of the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States (Discus) and the Scotch Whisky Association (SWA) at Mount Vernon, the home of US founding father George Washington and the site of a whisky distillery he opened in 1798 which was operated by his Scottish farm hand, James Anderson.
The First Minister flew to Washington DC on Tuesday, saying he would be “pressing the case” for a better tariff deal for Scotch whisky in key talks in the United States.
Two ads promoting British beef and milk have been banned after television presenter and environmental campaigner Chris Packham complained that they misled consumers about the products’ carbon footprints.
Both ads for the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board’s (AHDB) Let’s Eat Balanced campaign used the carbon footprint of British beef and milk to promote the products, firstly stating: “British beef not only tastes great, but has a carbon footprint that’s half the global average*.”
The asterisk linked to text that stated: “Full lifecycle emissions of CO2 eq (carbon dioxide equivalent) per kg of beef.”
The ad for milk stated: “British milk not only tastes good, but is also produced to world-class standards, and has a carbon footprint a third lower than the global average.”
Packham complained to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) that the ads, and specifically the carbon footprint claims, were misleading as they did not reflect the full environmental impact of British meat and dairy.
The AHDB said the ads’ mention of carbon emissions would be understood in relation to the environmental impact of beef and milk that occurred between the “cradle-to-retail” stages.
But the ASA said the average consumer “being reasonably well-informed, observant and circumspect” would understand the claims to apply beyond the retail stage and include actions such as cooking and wastage.
The ASA said: “While we acknowledged the potential difficulties in producing post-retail emissions data, the claims in the ads suggested those emissions were included and we therefore expected the evidence provided to also include them.
“We therefore concluded that the evidence presented was insufficient to support the full life-cycle claims in the ads, which was how the average consumer was likely to interpret them.
“We reminded AHDB that environmental claims should be based on the full life cycle unless the ad stated otherwise.”
AHDB’s director of communications and market development, Will Jackson, said: “Let’s Eat Balanced is doing what it was designed to do, providing clear, factual, evidence-led information about British food, nutrition and farming standards.
“Since the investigation began, we have conducted independent consumer research which found that the majority of respondents interpreted these adverts as relating to the production phase only, from farm to retail.
“This research provides important insight into consumer understanding and supports our belief that consumers were not misled by the information we shared in these two specific adverts.”
BENGALURU: India’s Gen Z workforce is embracing what experts describe as “portfolio careers” – balancing multiple professional identities and income streams simultaneously. New research from LinkedIn shows that 75% of Gen Z entrepreneurs in India now manage multiple income streams, significantly higher than the 62% among Gen X entrepreneurs. The findings point to a growing preference among younger professionals for flexibility, autonomy and diversified sources of income. “We’re also seeing the rise of the ‘portfolio era’, with more professionals creating multiple income streams and redefining what a career can look like. This shift is making entrepreneurship more accessible than ever before,” said LinkedIn India country manager Kumaresh Pattabiraman.Rather than depending on a single full-time role, many professionals are simultaneously building businesses, freelancing, consulting, creating online content and monetising specialised skills through digital platforms. The trend comes amid a broader rise in entrepreneurial activity in India. LinkedIn recorded a 104% year-on-year increase in members adding “Founder” to their profiles – the highest growth among all global markets.AI is also emerging as a major enabler of this shift. The report found that 85% of Gen Z entrepreneurs consider AI and digital tools important to their business operations.
Sam Altman said Elon Musk tried many times for total control of OpenAI, which he’s now suing.
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