It’s the burn at the end – it’s the discovery that three quarters of the cost of a bottle of Scotch Whisky, our global success, is claimed by the taxman. That’s right, three in every four pounds spent on an average bottle of Scotch Whisky in the UK is taken in tax.
 
The level of tax in the UK on Scotch Whisky is double that of France, three times that of Germany, and four times that of Spain. Consumers in the United States can pay just a fifth of the tax on Scotch that you do in Edinburgh, or Glasgow, or Inverness, or London.
 
That penalises consumers and hurts business. And on 22 November, there’s a risk that Three Quarters will become yesterday’s news if the Chancellor increases excise duty on Scotch Whisky and other spirits. Three quarters tax is already more than enough.
 
If he does, he will do so for the second time in just six months and stoke the inflation he and Prime Minister have promised to halve.
 
That’s why we’re asking you to join the campaign to get the Chancellor to freeze alcohol duty in the Autumn Statement. We’re asking you to post this message on social media, so the Chancellor and the Prime Minister know that a further tax hike on Scotch Whisky is not only unwelcome, but harmful. He already takes three quarters, surely that’s already more than enough?
 
@hmtreasury @Jeremy_Hunt @RishiSunak – it’s time to #SupportScotch with a freeze of spirits duty in the Autumn Statement.