Approval for £5m Falkirk whisky distillery

The new distillery is the first in Falkirk since Rosebank was shut in 1993

Scottish ministers have given final approval to plans for a £5m whisky distillery in Falkirk.

The development will also feature a visitor centre and restaurant and could create up to 80 new jobs.

The Falkirk Distillery Company will create the complex on land near Cadger's Brae, at Polmont.

The distillery will be the first to operate in the town since the famed Rosebank Distillery was shut in 1993.

Historic Scotland had raised objections about the development's proximity to the Antonine Wall, which was given World Heritage Status in 2008.

However, ministers found it would not directly impact on the wall and could boost tourism in the area.

Rosebank Distillery, which was situated beside the Forth and Clyde Canal and dated from the 1840s, produced a triple-distilled single malt. The bottles currently sell for more than £200.

Suggestions that the product produced at the new distillery might carry the Rosebank name have been denied by Diageo, which owns the trademark.