Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

UK minister hails important progress on UK-US trade relations during visit to Aberdeen

International Trade Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan, right, and US trade representative Katherine Tai visiting Enpro Subsea in Westhill, Aberdeenshire.
International Trade Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan, right, and US trade representative Katherine Tai visiting Enpro Subsea in Westhill, Aberdeenshire.

International trade secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan has insisted north and north-east firms can reap further rewards from closer ties with the US.

Speaking after a visit to Enpro Subsea, in Westhill, near Aberdeen, she said efforts to boost transatlantic business were already paying off.

She cited a five-year suspension of the damaging 25% tariff on Scotch whisky exports to the US.

Opening up the American market to Scottish beef is another sign of improving trade relations, she said.

We want to make it much less expensive and less cumbersome for Scottish firms to trade with the US.”

Anne-Marie Trevelyan, international trade secretary.

Ms Trevelyan and US trade representative Katherine Tai were in the north-east for the start of the second joint dialogue on the future of Atlantic trade.

The talks, which kicked off in Aberdeen and continue in London today (April 26), are focused on key sectors of the economy and building on the UK’s existing trade partnership with America – said to be worth around £200 billion.

Participants include people from across Scottish central and local government, as well as a wide range of businesses, trades unions and civil society groups.

Shortbread on the ‘menu’

A Sunday evening meeting on the eve of the main talks was attended by business chiefs from the Scottish food and drink industry, including from Walker’s Shortbread, of Aberlour, Moray, which is one of this country’s biggest global export success stories.

Also represented was US drink company Brown-Forman, which owns three Scotch whisky distilleries – GlenDronach, Benriach and Glenglassaugh – and employs hundreds of people in the UK.

According to UK Government figures, US investment is supporting more than 100,000 jobs and generating nearly £50bn for the Scottish economy.

Ms Trevelyan said: “We want to make it much less expensive and less cumbersome for Scottish firms to trade with the US.

“We are looking at how we can make it easier. We are also looking at female-led businesses and how we can maximise their potential.”

“I am really pleased to be able to bring our trade dialogue to Aberdeen. The city is an important part of the Scottish economy.”

Enpro’s ‘clever’ tech

The minister used her visit to Enpro to highlight the UK’s energy strategy.

Unveiled earlier this year, the strategy is aimed at energy security and independence, while supporting the transition from fossil fuels to new technologies.

Ms Trevelyan said Enpro and its “clever” technology showed achieving environmental goals “must go hand-in-hand with an evolving North Sea industry”.

Enpro Subsea chief executive Ian Donald..

Enpro – Subsea UK company of the year in 2020 – is focused on developing production-boosting technology, with all manufacturing previously outsourced to third parties.

Early in 2020 it was announced London-headquartered energy services firm Hunting had acquired the business from some of its management team and EV Private Equity in a £25.6 million deal.

Enpro, which operates globally, retained its senior management team, including chief executive Ian Donald, as well as its Westhill base. The firm continues to trade under its own brand.

Conversation