John Swinney’s intervention on whisky tariffs formed a “very big part” of Donald Trump’s decision to scrap them, the US president said in a note to Scotland’s First Minister.
The pair spoke for nine minutes on Friday afternoon, according to the SNP, discussing the decision taken by Mr Trump to scrap the 10% levy on the Scotch whisky industry following a visit by the King to the US.
Despite overwhelming positivity with the decision itself, it has caused a domestic wrangle, with the First Minister seeking to claim credit but Scottish Secretary Douglas Alexander hitting out.
In a note sent to the First Minister ahead of the decision being announced on Thursday, the president said: “Congratulations John – you were a very big part of my thinking on the matter of Scotland/Kentucky!”
Mr Swinney pushed hard last year for the tariffs to be scrapped – pointing to the cross-Atlantic trade in whisky casks hitting the industry in both Scotland and states such as Kentucky – including during a meeting in the White House.
In a statement released after the two men spoke on Friday, Mr Swinney said: “I was pleased to receive a call from the President of the United States this afternoon, which gave me the opportunity to thank him personally for ending the tariffs on Scotch whisky.
“The president was clear that our discussions on the mutual benefit of this deal, and Scotland’s ability to work with the state of Kentucky, formed a very big part of his thinking.
“He said that he was pleased to be able to do this for Scotland, together with His Majesty the King.
“We also briefly discussed international affairs, including the conflict in Iran.
“My primary duty as First Minister is to promote Scotland’s interests, and ensure that people’s jobs and livelihoods are protected.
“I am delighted that the hard work of all involved has now paid off.”
Speaking to the Press Association on Friday during a visit to Deanston Distillery near Stirling, Mr Swinney said he is “delighted” the tariffs are being lifted, as he welcomed the involvement of the King, who visited the US this week.
He also welcomed the involvement of the UK Government – but Mr Alexander criticised the First Minister for claiming credit.
The Scottish Secretary told LBC that the contention Mr Swinney had brought the issue of whisky tariffs to the president’s attention was a “lie”, adding that the First Minister had been “caught red-handed” claiming credit for a deal that was secured by the King.
In a statement, a spokesperson for Mr Alexander said: “The First Minister is of course at liberty to visit other countries and promote Scottish exports, but for him to claim that ‘this issue got put on the agenda because I put it there’ is simply not true.
“The British Government was raising the whisky issue long before and long after his DC visit.”
Mr Swinney told PA that Mr Alexander – who is co-chair of Scottish Labour’s Holyrood election campaign – was “demonstrating a desperation in his behaviour”.
The First Minister said: “I understand people’s emotions are raw and they’re under a lot of pressure and under a lot of stress.
“But I think Douglas Alexander really lets himself down with the way he speaks about other people and I don’t understand why he’s doing that.”
He later told journalists the relationship between the Scottish and UK governments had soured in recent months, and he traced it back to Mr Alexander’s appointment as Scottish Secretary in September.
Meanwhile, Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar said he was more interested in the jobs the announcement would protect than “politicians wishing to take false credit”.
“This is great news for Scotland’s whisky industry, for employers right across the country,” he told the BBC.
“The credit here has to go to His Majesty the King, who made a direct plea to the US administration that is going to be a game changer for the whisky industry here in Scotland.”
Earlier on Friday, Scotch Whisky Association head of strategy and communications Graeme Littlejohn said the tariffs announcement was the result of “months and months of work”, adding: “The King was the royal sparkle at the end of a lot of work to get a deal over the line here, this doesn’t happen overnight.”
He added: “The fact that these tariffs are now going to be removed… is a real boost for the industry, and distillers will breathe a little easier during a time of significant pressure on the industry.
“The impact of these tariffs has been significant, the US is the industry’s largest global market, around 20% of global exports of Scotch whisky goes to the United States, around £1 billion a year.
“Any tariff into a market of that size is going to have a significant impact.
“This tariff has definitely cost jobs, it has definitely paused investment in the industry, and it has definitely been a significant period of strain on the industry.”
Shadow chancellor Sir Mel Stride said he was in Edinburgh to “celebrate one of Scotland’s greatest exports, whisky, and the fact that the King has managed to deliver this tariff relief we’re all so pleased about”.
He added: “It is King Charles who has delivered this, not John Swinney.
“It’s a wonderful intervention the King has made, and it’s a great result for Scotland.”
Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay also hit out at the “nonsense John Swinney is spouting” on the removal of tariffs.
He said: “John Swinney is lying, it is nothing to do with him.
“This is to do with the King going over there on a state visit that numerous parties, including the Lib Dems and the Greens, wanted not to happen.
“Had it not happened, then this deal would not have happened, it is as simple as that.”
