Donald Trump arrives in the UK today amid hopes that he will offer some positive news for the whisky industry alongside new investment being announced by Google owner Alphabet.
The world’s fourth-biggest company is investing £5bn ($6.8bn) in artificial intelligence at a research centre in Hertfordshire.
It is the first of several massive US investments being unveiled ahead of the US President’s second state visit.
Google will officially open a vast $1bn (£735m) data centre in Waltham Cross with Chancellor Rachel Reeves today.
Further multi-billion-dollar investments from the US into the UK are expected and there are hopes that Mr Trump will address tariffs, including the levy on Scotch whisky following his meeting with Scotland’s First Minister John Swinney in the White House last week.
Mr Swinney will be attending a state banquet at Windsor Castle tomorrow and may hope to catch the eye of the president who has promised to review the 10% tariff which is costing the Scotch industry £4 million a week.
The First Minister earned praise for his flight to Washington and for gaining a hearing in the Oval Office, though new Scottish secretary, Douglas Alexander accused him of “playing politics” by claiming credit for the tariff negotiations.
Mr Alexander said it was the now-departed ambassador Lord Mandelson and the UK government who had been the driving force behind the campaign to get a tariff exemption for Scotch.
The president’s visit will provide Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer with some relief from domestic issues, though the departure of Lord Mandelson is bound to be raised.
Sir Keir will today face a three-hour emergency debate on his handling of a scandal that has added to questions among Labour MPs and ministers about whether he will lead his party into the next election.
The Prime Minister acknowledged yesterday that he had appointed Lord Mandelson to the post despite being aware that the peer’s “association” with the paedophile Jeffrey Epstein continued after the financier was jailed for sex crimes, and said he felt “let down” by his Labour colleague.
He said he was aware that the Foreign Office was investigating a damning leaked cache of emails in which Mandelson expressed his “love” and support for Epstein.
However, Sir Keir insisted that he did not know about the “contents” of the messages before he spoke out in support of Mandelson at prime minister’s questions last week.
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