British Prime Minister Keir Starmer evoked the free trade agreement (FTA) with India as he revealed on Friday that China had agreed to slash Scotch whisky import tariffs in half, worth around 250 million pounds to the UK economy over the next five years.

Scotch whisky is among the products to see Indian import tariffs significantly slashed once the FTA, known as the India-UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), completes its British Parliament ratification process in the coming months.

During his visit to Beijing and Shanghai this week, Starmer said he had secured a further win for Scotland’s iconic drinks industry as China agreed to cut tariffs from 10 per cent to 5 per cent.

“Our whisky distilleries are the jewel in Scotland’s crown. Having already slashed tariffs on whisky exports to India, we’re now doing the same with China – proof that our pragmatic, hard-headed international engagement brings benefits at home," Starmer said in a statement.

Under the India-UK CETA, tariffs on the Scotch whisky imports into India will be reduced immediately from 150 per cent to 75 per cent and then drop further to 40 per cent over the next 10 years.

According to Downing Street, this is set to increase sales to India by up to 1 billion pounds a year and grow the Scottish economy by 190 million pounds annually.

“Just months ago we secured a trade deal with India transforming the prospects for Scotch in the world’s largest whisky market. Now we have delivered again in China," said Douglas Alexander, UK Secretary of State for Scotland.

“This is another tremendous result delivered by the UK government for Scotland’s world-renowned whisky industry. From Delhi to Beijing, this government is opening doors for Scottish exporters and putting money in the pockets of working people across Scotland," he said.

China is currently Scotch whisky’s 10th largest market by value, and the latest tariff reduction is expected to further boost competitiveness in growing consumer markets of Asia for Scottish distillers.

“China is a priority growth market for many Scotch whisky producers, which in recent decades has developed into a knowledgeable and premium focused market with a strong appreciation of Scotch," said Mark Kent, Chief Executive of the Scotch Whisky Association (SWA).

“The proposed tariff reduction from 10 per cent to 5 per cent has the potential to re-energise exports of Scotch to this important market,” he said, calling for rapid implementation of the new rates.

It came as US President Donald Trump warned that Starmer's visit and decision to build closer ties with Beijing was "very dangerous".

However, the UK prime minister stressed that the US and the UK remain “very close allies” and that the visit to China this week had been discussed in advance with Trump’s team in Washington.

“I think I'm right in saying that President Trump is, himself, visiting China, or expected to visit China this April," said Starmer.

"It would be foolhardy to sit with your head in the sand and refuse to engage," he said.

The UK PM also revealed that a travel ban and other sanctions imposed by Beijing on British parliamentarians "no longer apply".

China had imposed the sanctions in 2021 on Conservative MPs Sir Iain Duncan Smith, Nusrat Ghani, Tom Tugendhat and Neil O'Brien as well as House of Lords peers who are vocal critics of the country's human rights abuses as part of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China.

Starmer told the BBC in Shanghai the lifting of their travel ban "vindicates" his approach of travelling to China and meeting President Xi Jinping for a "leader-to-leader discussion on sensitive issues".

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