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Mr Barroso’s comments fly in the face of claims by Scotland’s nationalist government that a Yes vote to independence in 2014 would not affect the country’s continuing membership of the EU. “We are a union of states”, Mr Barroso told the BBC’s Hardtalk. “If there is a new state, of course, that state has to apply for membership and negotiate the conditions with other Member States. For European Union purposes, from a legal point of view, it is certainly a new state. If a country becomes independent it is a new state that has to negotiate with the EU.”
Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland’s deputy first minister, insists that if Scots vote for self-rule they would not have to reapply for membership. “There is no provision for removing EU treaties from any part of EU territory or for removing European citizenship from the people of a country which has been in the EU for 40 years", she said.
Commenting on the remarks by the President of the European Commission, Scottish Secretary Michael Moore said:
The Commission President's comments are not surprising. We have said for some time that if Scotland were to leave the UK the most likely is that it would need to seek EU membership on newly negotiated terms while the rest of the UK would continue as a Member State.
That would mean Scotland needing to negotiate from a position of weakness, with all the implications that would have for agriculture, fisheries, and the economy. These are risks we do not face as part of the UK, a current, large and influential member.
And there is a bigger lesson here: the Scottish Government's assertions on this issue have been exposed. This debate must be based on robust evidence and fact. Our view has been based on legal and academic evidence while their position has been based on nothing. That is why we are where we are.
Press release © Liberal Democrats