Whisky tourism sector under threat from Scottish Government ad ban

His comments came as Nicola Sturgeon said she would “consider carefully” a plea from drinks companies to think again about the far-reaching proposals.

READ MORE: Alcohol advertising ban will put Scottish distillery 'out of business'

The consultation, launched late last year, runs until March 9, and proposes a number of measures to try and tackle what it describes as Scotland’s “deep, longstanding and troubled relationship with alcohol”.

As well as banning adverts on billboards and in newspapers and magazines, it also proposes an end to merchandise with alcohol branding, which could see distilleries and breweries unable to sell t-shirts and glassware.

It also suggests drinks firms be banned from sponsoring sporting and cultural events.

If all the measures being consulted are passed into law, it could even mean shops having to hide their alcohol. 

READ MORE: Alcohol could be 'hidden like tobacco' in marketing curbs

Mr Morrison said the ban would have a detrimental impact on the wider Scottish economy.

“The fact that you are effectively prohibiting the sale of any alcohol branded merchandise of any kind would impact many, many tourism businesses, not just the distilleries.”

He said the millions who visited Scotland for Scotch were “not just spending money in the distilleries”.

“The distilleries are often in parts of Scotland that are quite remote. There’s often not a lot else to do. They bring visitors to these communities. These visitors then spend money in other shops and restaurants and cafes and hotels. It is fundamental to the tourism offering in Scotland.”

Mr Morrison said whisky companies had invested millions in their attractions. He pointed to the £150m Johnnie Walker Experience in Edinburgh and the £140m Macallan distillery in Craigellachie.

“Ultimately, if you were to introduce it as it currently stands, I think that places like the Scotch Whisky Experience and the Johnnie Walker Princes Street in Edinburgh, they would either just have to board up the windows or they just have to shut completely.

“And I can’t see how any distillery or brewery visitor experience would continue either. I think they would all have to stop. And that fundamentally changes the tourism offering in Scotland. It really does.

“Think of the message that sends out. Are we supposed to be embarrassed by whisky? I mean, it’s a massive cultural asset to Scotland. It really is.”

Alison Douglas from the Alcohol Focus charity said she had “sympathy with people’s businesses and livelihoods”.

“But on the other side of this equation is a huge amount of misery and loss of life due to alcohol consumption,” she added. “And we’ve really got to do something more to stop that.”

Speaking to the BBC, the charity boss said that alcohol was linked to around 3,700 deaths each year. 

She said: “We know that marketing works. I mean, if it didn’t work, would we be having this level of outcry from the industry? It’s about recruiting new drinkers, it’s about sustaining consumption amongst those who are already drinking. And that’s really causing an unacceptable amount of harm.”

Ms Douglas said the international evidence showed that a complete ban was the most effective route to tackling alcohol-related health harms.

“This is not just about people’s health, it’s also having a massive effect on our economy and look at the NHS at the moment – alcohol is making a major contribution to hospital admissions to emergency admissions to our ambulance service call out. This is making a major impact on our economy.”

Yesterday, more than 100 firms – including Belhaven, Budweiser, Diageo, Whyte & Mackay, Brewdog, the Macallan and Tennent’s Lager – signed an open letter to the SNP-Green administration urging them not to “destroy Scotland’s drinks industry”.

Nicola Sturgeon was asked about the letter during her press conference in Edinburgh. 

The First Minister insisted the consultation was “not about doing economic damage to the alcohol industry”.

“It is about making sure we are taking responsible steps to protect public health.”

She added: “I am aware of the letter that has been sent; the consultation, of course, is ongoing.

“The public health minister will meet with a range of stakeholders over the course of the consultation.

The First Minister stressed that “nobody in Government is telling people not to drink alcohol at all”, adding that the changes being considered were about the “responsible consumption of alcohol”.

She added that there is evidence globally that “advertising that glamourises” could “lead to over-consumption of alcohol”.

READ MORE: SFA say football alcohol ad ban could have 'grave' consequences

Ms Sturgeon said: “These are things we need to consider carefully and we will consider them carefully.”

In their letter, the firms said the industry employs 88,700 people in Scotland, and contributes £6.1 billion gross value added to the economy each year. 

However, they said the sector had “suffered hard through the Covid years”, and added that the current cost of living crisis “threatens the very existence” of some firms.

The drinks firms said: “At times like these, we urgently need the support of our Government and elected representatives.”

They also questioned the evidence behind the proposal.

The companies insist they “recognise and share in the Scottish Government’s determination to reduce harmful consumption of alcohol”.

However, they said the ban would “not serve to achieve this and do not address the root cause of why someone might come to have a harmful relationship with alcohol”.

“Instead, they will needlessly hold our country back, to the detriment of Scottish jobs.”

“With the support of brewers and distillers across Scotland and the UK, we urge the Scottish Government to listen to our concerns regarding the significant impact these measures will have not only on the alcohol industry, but on the thousands of families it supports, but wider Scottish society, too.”

***

By Andrew Learmonth

WHEN Diageo announced they were set to spend £150 million on developing the state of the art Johnnie Walker Experience in Edinburgh, Nicola Sturgeon was one of the first to welcome the cash boost.

“This significant investment will not only help attract more tourists to Scotland, offering world-class visitor experiences, but it also underlines the fundamental importance of the whisky sector to Scotland’s economy,” she said.

Yet less than two years after it opened, new Scottish Government plans could force the firm to board up their windows and cover up their drams.

A consultation on bringing in a ban on alcohol advertising, launched late last year, proposes a number of measures to try and tackle Scotland’s problematic relationship with alcohol.

As well as banning adverts on billboards and in newspapers and magazines, it also proposes an end to merchandise and brand sharing.

No more Talisker t-shirts, or Brewdog Beanies or Isle of Harris gin tea.

And if all the measures being consulted are passed into law, it could also mean shops having to hide their alcohol and keep it out of sight.

As whisky expert and consultant, Blair Bowman told The Herald: “It really is so odd that you could come here as a tourist and not even see a bottle of whisky anywhere and see more of it when you land back in the airport back home.”

According to the most recent figures from the Scotch Whisky Association, in 2019, of the more than 2.16 million people who visited distilleries, two-thirds were from overseas.

The trade body said spending at visitor centres was worth around £84.7m.
According to a survey of their members, more than 1,200 people work in tourism roles at visitor centres all over the country.

“To do this to the whisky industry would be so damaging,” Mr Bowman said. “Especially in rural communities. To remove the element around the branding, so no whisky hats, or t-shirts or glasses.

“It is absolutely vital to some of these communities to keep a gift shop open.”

Mr Bowman added: “Even outside of whisky, if we look at these smaller new gin distilleries that have popped up again, often in rural places, making amazing jobs, making amazing products.

“They would really struggle if that was now banned, and they couldn’t sell that anymore.”

Another key measure in the Scottish Government proposals would see booze firms banned from sponsoring sporting and cultural events.

“The Edinburgh Festival Fringe, the Book Festival, the Film Festival, Scottish Ballet, so many of these amazing arts and cultural events and organisations really depend on sponsorships from drinks companies.

“They don’t get enough funding through the government already. And if this was taken away, again, I think they would struggle.

“They’ve had a tough time as it is with Covid and Brexit and everything. If that was suddenly not allowed, then I don’t think they will be viable.

“So overnight, we could lose all of this amazing culture and heritage.

“Everything that makes Scotland an exciting place to come and visit would be taken away.”

“Scotch whisky is such an amazing asset,” he added. “Any other country in the world would be jealous to have scotch whisky within their stable of exports.

“Here we are shouting about how amazing it is globally, and all that kind of stuff, but then domestically, trying to penalise it and shut it down and put it in a corner.”

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “Alcohol-related harm is one of the most pressing public health challenges that we face in Scotland.

“An average of 700 people are hospitalised and 24 people die each week from illnesses caused by drinking alcohol. That’s why we have taken forward initiatives such as Minimum Unit Pricing (MUP) in the face of significant challenge from some quarters of the alcohol industry”.

The spokesperson continued: “Our alcohol framework is clear that we will work with the alcohol industry on projects which can impact meaningfully on reducing alcohol harms.”