Haggis was on the menu at the Tories’ Black and White Ball on Monday, and now it’s on the political agenda too. In an otherwise dry speech on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership at the Institute of Directors this morning, Conservative Party Chairman Grant Shapps threw his weight behind Mr Steerpike’s campaign to have the US import ban on haggis overturned:
‘It is quite literally a criminal offence, for a British farmer to sell certain products to the largest economy on Earth, even if American diners want to enjoy these dishes.
President Obama – whose family tree is said to go all the way back to a 12th-century king of Scotland – has never in his life been able to buy an authentic Scottish haggis for his family, not even on Burns night.
Now, you may or may not like haggis… But, to paraphrase Voltaire: I may not agree with what the Scottish eat, but I will defend to the death their right to eat it!
It would be wonderful to decriminalise haggis – but, of course, most trade barriers aren’t criminal in nature.’
Speaking to The Spectator‘s contributing editor Harry Cole after the speech, Shapps revealed he last ate haggis at Monday night’s multi-million pound raising Tory ball.
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