Scottish MPs tease Commons staff over spelling of whisky

House of Commons staff have been teased by Scottish MPs after making a cardinal sin – referring to Scotch whisky as whiskey.

On the daily Commons order paper, complied by parliamentary staff, the body which represents distillers north of the border was named the “Scottish Whiskey Association” to the horror of all above the Tweed.

The organisation is in fact called the Scotch Whisky Association and its boss Karen Betts who gave evidence at the Scottish affairs committee yesterday, where MPs have vowed to settle the “e” debate once and for all.

Douglas Ross MP, who represents the Scotch whisky capital Moray, said: “I know we’ve not been able to have a dram in the House of Commons bar for some time while the current coronavirus restrictions have been in place, but that’s no reason to confuse whisky with whiskey!

The difference in the spelling comes from the translations of the word from the Scottish and Irish Gaelic forms.

A House of Commons spokesperson said: “We are aware of the misspelling on today’s order paper. This has now been corrected.”

Karen Betts later told the committee the US 25% tariff posed a greater threat to the Scotsh whisky industry than Covid-19.

She said: “In the first six months of that tariff being in place, our exports to the United States fell by 25%, and the United States is our biggest and most valuable market so that’s really significant.”

Exports to the US in April were down 47%, she said, as the impact of both the tariff and the coronavirus lockdown were felt.