Europeans will welcome back an independent Scotland in to the EU

An independent Scotland asking to rejoin the EU would be welcomed by most Europeans. The latest YouGov EuroTrack survey asked people in Denmark, France, Germany, Italy and Spain about this, and between 63 and 75% say they will support an independent Scotland joining the EU. 

In all of those countries, very few people, only about one in ten, said they would be opposed to Scotland rejoining.

In fact, the strongest opposition to an independent Scotland rejoining the EU doesn’t come from within the EU itself, but from the rest of the UK. Around one-third of people in rUK oppose an independent Scotland rejoining. 

However, almost half would support it and the rest have no strong view. This means that even south of the border, most people would either welcome Scotland’s return to the EU or believe it’s for Scots to decide. And across EU countries themselves, support for an independent Scotland rejoining is even higher.

In Scotland, a massive 70% now want to rejoin the EU

Back in 2016, every part of Scotland voted to remain in the EU. Since then, support for rejoining has only grown  with recent polls showing that almost three-quarters of Scots are now in favour of EU membership.

During the 2014 independence referendum, Scots were told that leaving the UK would mean losing their place in the EU. The UK government even sent a leaflet to every household claiming that voting to stay in the UK was the only way to protect Scotland’s voice “at the EU’s top table.”

Just two years later, Scotland was dragged out of the EU against its will leaving many feeling lied to and betrayed.

As the reality of Brexit sinks in, more and more Scots see the mounting costs and damage, while Westminster does little to fix the mess it created.

• Brexit has cost the Scottish economy £4 billion.  
• Britain’s goods exports have slumped compared with the rest of the G7. 
• Services, especially new ones, are increasingly impacted too. 
• The trade barriers with Northern Ireland have grown higher - so Scottish businesses have even more limited options for exports.
• Outside the EU in a risky global trading environment, Britain is dangerously exposed and must pander to Donald Trump
• Brexit has made it harder to deal fairly with asylum seekers
• Free movement was important for many Scottish businesses - but now the UK government is introducing extra costs, delays and red tape for bringing in skilled workers 
• Brexit impacts the life chances of Scots - once ordinary Scots could easily move to the EU to study, work or to spend a few years of their retirement in sunnier climes. Now that is only an option for the rich, who can qualify for so-called “golden visas”. 

To make matters worse Scotland has no say over planned “reset”

Scotland has no say over the UK government’s planned “Brexit reset” which is so far mostly fudge. Labour is too scared of Reform to make meaningful change, most of the subjects opened up for discussion are nowhere near having an impact.

There is no meaningful change, even on something as small as musicians touring. The EU has indicated that the UK can’t join the pan-European trading bloc. Labour is too afraid of Reform to rejoin the Customs Union. 

The UK government is in talks about a youth visa scheme - though even if they manage to reach an agreement, it will take many years to give young Scots even a tenth of the rights that young Irish people already have to work and study abroad.

It is clear that the only return into Europe for Scotland is through independence. 

EU membership wasn’t just a political preference, it was a huge benefit for Scotland’s businesses, workers, and young people alike. Despite Scotland voting decisively to remain, we were dragged out against our will.

Since Brexit, the UK has stumbled into an economic slump, with lower productivity and shrinking exports. As part of the UK, Scotland doesn’t even have a voice in shaping the half-hearted “reset” attempts coming from Westminster.

For centuries, Scotland has been a strongly outward looking and European nation. After Brexit, we asked Europe to leave a light on for us. It is good to know it is still burning brightly.