British trade secretary Liz Truss says she will step up talks with her counterpart in the United states to urge Washington to drop tariffs on single malt Scotch whisky after the US decided to retain the levy.
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The US government on Wednesday said it would maintain 15 per cent tariffs on Airbus aircraft and 25 per cent tariffs on other European goods including Scotch whisky, as part of a long running dispute.
"These tariffs damage industry and livelihoods on both sides of the Atlantic and are in nobody's interests," Truss said in a statement on Thursday.
"I am therefore stepping up talks with the US to remove them as soon as possible."
The Scotch Whisky Association said the US tariff decision was deeply disappointing and it was urging London to do more to protect the industry.
It said the tariff was inflicting huge damage on the Scotch Whisky sector, with exports to the US down 30 per cent since the tariff came into effect and the industry grappling with losses now totalling around STG300 million ($A547 million).
Australian Associated Press