Thursday 20 February 2014

Scotland and Europe.


The headlines on the BBC and in other media yesterday evening (16 February 2014) were highlighting comments from current European Commission President José Manuel Barroso, who claims that it will be "difficult, if not impossible" for an independent Scotland to join the European Union.

This is not the first time that Mr Barroso's sentiments have been trumpeted in this way, and given that he repeats them regularly it will presumably not be the last.

So far none of the mainstream media reports have really questioned the basis of Mr Barroso's claim – a bizarre comparison between Scotland, which is pursuing a constitutional referendum on the issue of statehood, and Kosovo, which has attempted an unconstitutional secession. They have not reported what the Spanish government has actually said (as distinct from what it is being assumed or implied to have said). Nor have they pointed out that Mr Barroso's opinion cannot simply be taken as that of the European Commission, which has protocol on such issues, but is rather the personal viewpoint of a conservative Portugese politician with a particular agenda.

These are significant omissions. Even if they are eventually corrected, by online researchers and commentators if nowhere else, it is first impressions which sow seeds of doubt with many onlookers – as the well-funded anti-independence lobby, utilising the weapons of its self-titled 'Project Fear', knows all too well.

In Mr Barroso's argument, Scotland will be a new EU accession country and will require unanimous approval from existing member states. This will be "very difficult" because Spain is likely to oppose its membership in order to be able to thwart its own Catalan separatists. Such canards have, of course, been repeated and demolished several times already.

First, Scotland has been a member of the European Union as part of the UK for many years, and would be looking for continuity with current arrangements as an independent state whose existing broad legal, political and economic framework remains in line with EU requirements. It also holds potential for some 25 per cent of Europe's prime natural energy resources (36.5 GW of wind and 7.5 GW of tidal power) and in its own right would be one of the most prosperous nations on the planet. The idea that existing EU members would suddenly want to bar such a country from contributing to the European project and their shared wealth is politically unsustainable.

Second, the comparison with Kosovo is completely inappropriate. Spain has opposed the Kosovan membership bid. But why? Because Kosovo, which has never been a part of an EU member state (unlike Scotland), declared unilateral independence (unlike Scotland), despite the fact that the Belgrade constitution forbids the independence of any part of Serbian territory (unlike the UK in relation to Scotland).

Constitutional expert Graham Avery, the European Commission's honorary Director General, appearing before the European and External Relations Committee of the Scottish Parliament, said in January 2014 that the position on Scotland in Europe taken by the UK government (and those who adopt postures similar to Mr Barroso) was "perplexing" and "absurd".

From Simon Barrow's Blog on Ekklesia.

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