Independent Scotland out of Europe By David Martin MEP The question of Scottish membership of the European Union has come full-circle in the past two years. From the nationalists insistence that Scotlands uninterrupted membership was cut-and-dry, we have tumbled through parliamentary questions, expert advice, threatened legal action and arrived back at the point that the issue is indeed quite simple: Scotland will have to reapply and even the fast lane to EU membership is a long road. The EU Commission was quite clear in its interpretation. In 2004 it stated that when part of the territory of a Member State ceases to be a part of that state, e.g. because that territory becomes an independent state, the treaties will no longer apply in that territory. In other words, a newly independent region would, by the fact of its independence, become a third country with respect to the Union and the treaties would, from the day of its independence, not apply anymore on its territory. It confirmed this position this year. The idea that Scotland could secure independence in the morning and have the Saltire flying for the 29th Member State by dinnertime is as arrogant as it is fanciful. Dont get me wrong, I think negotiations for membership would begin quite far down the track. We have heard claims that Scotland would be welcomed with open arms because of our fishing water and oil reserves – would that negotiations for EU membership were so simple! Pro-independence supporters are less keen to admit that as a new applicant to the EU, Scotland would not have an opt-out from the Euro and would be obliged to join when it met the economic conditions. The opt-out to Schengen’s open borders would also be lost. Furthermore, some other EU countries, like Spain or Belgium, under pressure from their own independence movements, would not embrace Scotland’s membership. Do I think these obstacles could be overcome? Eventually, yes. But the lengthy process would not only jeopardise our employment rights during the years of negotiations, it would leave us no better off in pursuing strong social-democratic principles at EU level. I commend GMB members for giving serious consideration to the implications of this issue from all angles, and have been glad to help support their wide-ranging consultation process which led to their recent decision to support a No vote in the referendum on Scottish independence. Solidarity among people across Europe is crucial in the face of the continuing right-wing attacks on jobs, services and rights. Putting up barriers and isolating ourselves from our neighbours is not the answer. We are at our best when we tackle common problems together at every level. Blacklisting is as wrong in Glasgow as it is in Gloucester and Gothenburg. We should reject a nationalist ideology of separation in the UK and EU and look to build alliances for progressive change to the benefit of all.
Posted on: Mon, 25 Nov 2013 10:41:09 +0000
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