The recent Spirit of Stirling Whisky Festival has received praise in the Scottish Parliament after Mid-Scotland & Fife Conservative MSP Murdo Fraser lodged a parliamentary motion on the success of the inaugural event. The motion has received cross-party support from Labour, Liberal Democrat, SNP and fellow Conservative MSPs. MSP Murdo Fraser, who attended the Spirit of Stirling Whisky Festival on Saturday 12th May, hopes that the festival now becomes a permanent fixture in the Stirling calendar. The parliamentary motion reads: “That the Parliament welcomes the success of the first Spirit of Stirling Whisky Festival, which took place on 12th May 2012 at the Albert Hall; recognises that the event allowed visitors to experience some of the best whiskies that Scotland has to offer, with over 30 distilleries and brands exhibiting at the festival as well other exhibitors related to the whisky industry present; notes that tickets for the festival were sold out in its first year and provided a boost to the Stirling economy; believes that whisky is one of Scotland’s finest products and that Stirling is an excellent location to celebrate national events; and wishes the festival and Scotland’s whisky industry continued success in future years.” Murdo Fraser said: “The Spirit of Stirling Whisky Festival is a welcome addition to the local calendar. It was welcome to see such a buzz around the event, with the Albert Hall and Stirling acting as a fantastic setting for it. “The festival provided a real boost to Stirling – having sold out in its first year – and I hope it will become a permanent fixture in Stirling and grow in size over the coming years. It was welcome to see so many distilleries, brands and exhibitors at the festival and it was a great occasion to showcase one of Scotland’s finest products.”