That the Parliament congratulates the whisky industry on reports that 2016 was a record year in distillery tourism, with 1.7 million visitors, which was an 8% increase on the previous year; notes that distillery tours have increased by a quarter since 2010 and that more than half of the country's 123 distilleries are now open to the public; recognises that these latest figures show that the average spend increased by 13%, with visitors now spending £31 at gift shops, up from £27; understands that visitors from Germany, the United States, France, Scotland and the rest of the UK are the most likely to take a tour of a distillery; considers this good news for the 11 distilleries in Perth and Kinross, Fife, Stirling and Clackmannanshire, and hopes that the 2017 figures record a similar increase.
Supported by:
Tom Arthur, Jeremy Balfour, Michelle Ballantyne, Colin Beattie, Bill Bowman, Miles Briggs, Alexander Burnett, Donald Cameron, Jackson Carlaw, Finlay Carson, Peter Chapman, Jamie Halcro Johnston, Rachael Hamilton, Alison Harris, Liam Kerr, Tom Mason, Margaret Mitchell, Liz Smith, Alexander Stewart, Adam Tomkins, Annie Wells, Brian Whittle