Holyrood Health Committee recalls Whyte & Mackay and Tesco

Misleading evidence given by whisky distiller Whyte and Mackay and supermarket giant Tesco to the Scottish Parliament’s Health Committee, has led to the committee’s Convener, Christine Grahame, MSP, recalling both.

Whyte and Mackay’s CEO, John Beard, told the committee that the Scottish Government’s proposal to introduce minimum pricing per unit of alcohol could see 300 jobs lost in Scotland.

As we reported at the time, Mr Beard omitted to make clear to the committee that his calculations ere based on a significantly higher price per unit (50 pence) than the Scottish Government has ever suggested.

Moreover, Mr Beard did not make it clear that the predicted job losses would follow not simply the introduction in Scotland of the proposed measure, but would be consequent upon the entire UK introducing such a policy.

In recalling Mr Beard to account to the Health Comittee for his argument, Ms Grahame has said that in neither his written nor his oral evidence a week ago did the Whyte and Mackay executive make the basis of his erroneous job loss predictions clear to the committee.

Tesco has also been recalled to explain ‘an apparent contradiction’ in its evidence.

This relates to Tesco Director David North’s appearance before a House of Commons Select Committee, where he said that  the company was in favour of minimum pricing.

Yet Tony McElroy, Tesco’s Corporate Affairs Manager, told the Holyrood committee that the company would be prepared to discuss minimum pricing with the Scottish Government – but expressed reservations on the measure.

Ms Grahame feels that Mr McElroy’s position, appears at odds with the evidence given in Westminster by his corporate senior and has asked him to return to clarify the situation.