'Everyone's been bugging me' – Trump on whiskey tariffs

US President Donald Trump announced during a ceremony honoring Shane Lowry in Doonbeg, Co Clare that he will remove tariffs on Irish whiskey. The decision came after discussions with Irish Taoiseach Micheál Martin and Lowry himself. The move was prompted by widespread complaints from the whiskey industry about the unfair tariffs.

Under the current system, Irish whiskey enjoys a 10% tariff, making it less competitive against Scotch and Northern Irish whiskey, which face no tariffs at all. The EU and the United States had previously agreed to limit the EU's share of the US market to 15%, but this deal has hindered the growth of Irish whiskey exports. The Irish Whiskey Association noted a 21.5% increase in export volumes to the EU over the past four years, highlighting the importance of the EU market for the industry.

With this tariff removal, Trump aims to support the continued growth of Irish whiskey and its contribution to the country's agri-food economy and tourism sector.