Author: Elise

Preparations to join the EU must be made in time for Independence Day

Posted on by Elise
As soon as the decision is made that Scotland will become an independent country, we must ensure we’re ready to apply to join the EU from day one of independence. Below, we set out Yes for EU’s position on the process for independent Scotland to join the EU.

Yes for EU asserts that there already exists a strong mandate for the Scottish Government to start negotiations for EU membership as soon as Scotland becomes independent: in the 2016 Brexit referendum Scots voted by a majority of 62% to 38% to remain. Polls continue to demonstrate an even stronger majority in favour of Scotland’s EU membership (e.g. Survation poll). In every Scottish Parliament since 2016, there has been a pro-EU majority of MSPs, elected on pro-EU manifestoes, and a similar situation is anticipated for the next Parliament from 2026 onwards. The democratic will of the people of Scotland will therefore be clearly demonstrated, and thus a mandate for the government of an independent Scotland to proceed without delay with negotiations towards an EU accession treaty. 

Should a future independence referendum be held, we would call for strong and highly publicised commitment from the pro-independence parties to seek EU membership for Scotland as soon as independence is achieved. This will be vital to build confidence among the 70% of Scots who want to be back in the EU.

Once Scottish people have chosen independence in a future referendum, or via another democratic mechanism (such as a general election), following that “Decision Day” the Scottish Government should immediately begin preparations for EU accession. These could include preliminary work on the accession process, whether via an association agreement or other route, so that the basis for the accession treaty is being drawn up at the same time as the withdrawal from the UK is negotiated; formal negotiations for EU membership cannot take place until Scotland is an independent sovereign state, but pre-independence informal engagement with the EU, in various forms, would not be unusual. This would allow Scotland to gain rapid access to some EU benefits, including the single market, following “Independence Day” (i.e. day one of independence). There may be a transition period of a few months. Pre-independence preparatory work will also facilitate speedy conclusion of the accession treaty itself.

Some argue that the pre-independence Scottish Government should plan for a separate Yes/No or EU/EFTA referendum on EU membership at some point after Independence Day. This would be unnecessary, given the existing mandate, and also inadvisable: in EU eyes, it would cast doubt on Scotland’s commitment, and would delay membership, creating protracted uncertainty for Scottish businesses and society. It would mean Scotland spending a year or more in limbo, outwith both the UK and the EU, which would be highly detrimental for trade and the overall economy.

Instead, we advocate pre-independence preparations and engagement as outlined above, so that on Independence Day – perhaps 1-2 years after Decision Day – the Scottish Government will be ready to immediately make the formal application to become a candidate for EU membership as a sovereign state, and enjoy pre-accession benefits. Updates on progress towards accession should be openly and widely shared so that the Scottish public are kept well-informed. Once a Scotland-EU accession treaty has been negotiated, a referendum seeking Scots’ approval on the accession deal – though not an EU requirement – could be a good final step to show there is strong public support. Many previous new member countries have adopted this process. Whether or not such a referendum is held, all EU member states will have to ratify the treaty for it to come into effect. Estimates of the period of time from Independence Day to full EU membership range from about 2 – 5 years. 

The view from Yes for EU – Part 2: what are they campaigning for?

Posted on by Elise
Pro-EU groups south of the border – what are they campaigning for?

by Morag Williamson, Yes for EU team

It’s great to see that pro-EU organisations based south of the border are alive and kicking, including the European Movement UK (EMUK), Grassroots for Europe (GfE), and National Rejoin March (NRM). In Yes for EU we naturally focus our campaign activities on our own twin aims of independence and EU membership for Scotland, however we also support in spirit the pro-EU efforts by England-based groups.

European Movement UK street stall
Image credit: europeanmovement.co.uk

Note, however, that these groups do not constitute a homogeneous movement – they vary in their pro-EU aims. The European Movement UK (EMUK) is the foremost and most influential of the England-based pro-EU organisations. Their leadership team currently comprises Mike Galsworthy, Caroline Lucas and Dominic Grieve, all with impeccable anti-Brexit credentials. According to their website, EMUK’s perspective on the EU-UK relationship is that: “The UK’s economic and political interests, and the global pursuit of our shared values of peace, freedom, democracy, human rights and the rule of law are best achieved through the UK rebuilding closer ties with the European Union [my italics]…. The European Movement’s mission now is to address head-on the issue that UK politics is avoiding: acknowledging and highlighting the damaging impacts of Britain’s decision to leave the European Union. It is in the UK’s national interest to reverse that damage and build back our relationship with the EU.” [my italics]. All good stuff, but there is no mention of seeking EU membership; EMUK’s vision for the UK is evidently not to Rejoin.

European Movement in Scotland President’s Blog, August 2024
Image credit: euromovescotland.org.uk

This aim of ‘rebuilding closer ties with the EU’ is a gradualist or incrementalist approach, which urges the UK government to negotiate with the EU to obtain specific benefits step-by-step, such as access to the single market and customs union, freedom of movement, visas for artists and musicians, full access to Erasmus and European research programmes etc. The European Movement in Scotland (EMiS) appears to be adopting this approach too. In a letter published in the National (22/10/2024), EMiS Chair David Clarke states that their “ambition is to see Scotland back inside the institutions of the EU at the earliest possible time”. This stops short of saying they want Scotland to be a member, or even that they want the UK to be a member again. It also fails to elaborate on Scotland’s possible routes back to EU membership – ie either via independence or as part of the UK – but setting that important issue aside for the moment, the point here is that instead of campaigning for Scotland or the UK to join/rejoin, EMUK and EMiS see the UK Labour government as the best hope of trying to recover, piecemeal, some of our lost EU benefits (reminder: this is a government that has stated time and again that it will ‘make Brexit work’, with a leader who says Britain will not rejoin the EU in his lifetime).

A contrasting approach is presented by another England-based pro-EU organisation, Reboot Britain. It has published a ‘White Paper’ by its founder, Peter Cook, who puts a detailed cross-party case for the UK to rejoin the EU. The paper sets out ‘Five Strategies to Rejoin’, and the group is pursuing a campaign of letter-writing to MPs and high-profile figures to seek support for Rejoining outright. The paper is here: Reboot Britain – Rejoin EU.pdf – Google Drive. There are online meetings every Monday evening at 8pm, open to everyone interested, and full details of the campaign are here.

Reboot Britain campaigns for UK to Rejoin outright
Image credit: brexitrage.com

Reboot Britain rejects the incrementalist position, which Cook also refers to as ‘fundamentalist’. He claims that “1000 ameliorations through a series of micro deals will not get the UK to a point of sustainable growth and resilience.” He argues that incrementalism may ultimately be self-defeating, as it may result in the UK never reaching the goal of Rejoining the EU: some sectors of the population will gradually have their needs satisfied and the overall number of those who wish to Rejoin will decline. From the EU perspective, politicians tend to be sceptical of the incrementalist approach, seeing it as a continuation of British ‘cakeism’, whereby the UK government apparently still believes it can extract benefits from the EU, which are actually membership benefits, but without seeking to become a member.

As fellow UK citizens, we in Yes for EU sympathise with the pro-EU folk south of the border and we support the spirit of their campaign efforts. As fellow grassroots campaigners constantly trying to make the most effective use of limited resources, we recognise that the question they are dealing with now down south is whether to engage in a protracted series of many minor battles for small gains, ie an incrementalist approach, or embark on one major battle for the whole package of benefits, namely EU membership. We would encourage them not to be timid in the face of current Westminster party politics which pander to the right; we urge them to reject incrementalism, which not only lacks ambition but is also likely to be ineffective. Indeed, with Rejoiners now in the majority in the population – even in England! – the case for a decisive government policy to Rejoin is stronger than ever right now. A vigorous UK-wide ‘Rejoin now!’ campaign would not be inconsistent with Yes for EU’s aims; indeed, if explicit support for Scottish independence and the break-up of the UK were to be incorporated into the campaign, this would be in our mutual interest: it would enhance the campaign rationale and offer more than one potential way forward – not just EU membership for the UK, and not just EU membership for Scotland, but EU membership for England and the other nations! 

The view from Yes for EU – Part 1: the potential of Scottish independence

Posted on by Elise
Pro-EU bodies in England continue to campaign, but are blind to the potential of Scottish independence for hastening the return of all four nations to the EU. 

by Morag Williamson, Yes for EU team

It’s not just we Scots who are campaigning to get back into the EU – the pro-EU movement down south is increasingly active, and that’s good to see. In the years 2016-19 many of us campaigned against Brexit, and we had strong links with anti-Brexit pro-EU groups south of the border. Following the 2019 general election result and the inevitability of Brexit, we created this Yes for EU group, and we maintained links for a while; but although pro-EU groups in England generally understood and empathised with Scots’ anger at our democratic wish to remain in the EU being ignored by Westminster, there was little interest in our potential route back to the EU via Scottish independence.

National Rejoin March, 28th September 2024, London
Source: marchforrejoin.co.uk

Naturally we empathise with the many Remainers south of the border – now the majority of the English population – who, unlike Scots, now have no pro-Rejoin political party to vote for, and no clear route back to the EU. They had high hopes that the long-awaited new Labour government, finally elected in July 2024, would see sense and aim to rejoin the EU, but the opposite has happened; in spite of its whopping majority at Westminster, Labour has doubled down on its absurd ‘make Brexit work’ policy. Pro-EU organisations such as Grassroots for Europe, European Movement UK, National Rejoin March etc are faced with Labour obduracy that is little different from that of the previous Tory administration. And in any case, in just a few short years, the UK government may well pass into Tory Brexiter hands again, but next time round potentially under pressure from a strong  Reform UK presence in the Westminster Parliament.

Prof David Edgerton: “The breakup of the union may be one of the few good things to come out of Brexit”
Source: New York Times nytimes.com

With one or two notable exceptions, pro-EU campaigners in England tend to show limited understanding or interest in Scottish politics. Why would they, when UK mainstream media repeatedly claim that the independence movement is history?  Scottish independence is either ignored in the media or it is misperceived as being synonymous with the SNP, or something that self-evidently should be opposed. Likewise, pro-EU bodies in England frame their campaign only in terms of the UK-EU relationship, ignoring differences in public opinion across the four nations; on their websites, in email newsletters, and on their social media posts, there is an unquestioned assumption that the union is a permanent fixture and must be preserved. Any possibility of ‘break-up’ of the union is regarded as a threat to be avoided at all costs. In one sense this is not a surprise as the pro-EU organisations are inevitably composed of mostly unionist political party supporters, however it is disappointing to see their collective lack of ability, or unwillingness, to think beyond the constitutional status quo. Issues of Scottish and/or Welsh independence, and Irish reunification, and their relevance to relationships with the EU, are given precious little consideration. Yet many political analysts agree that these major constitutional changes are entirely possible, even probable, and perhaps desirable. Indeed, the notion of the break-up of Britain was thoroughly discussed at an event of that title held in Edinburgh in 2023, with a line-up of high-profile speakers; ‘The Break Up of Britain’ was also the title of Tom Nairn’s 1977 book, which had inspired the event and prompted discussion of an alternative vision for our islands’ constitutional future. A number of other historians and political commentators have likewise embraced the positive potential of a ‘break up’. As historian Professor David Edgerton wrote in 2020 in the New York Times, “The breakup of the union certainly won’t be easy but it may be one of the few good things to come out of Brexit — not just for Scotland and Ireland but also, and perhaps especially, for England.”  

Break Up Of Britain conference held in Edinburgh on 18th November 2023
Source: thebreakupofbritain.net

Our view in Yes for EU is that a newly-independent Scotland, which is embarking on the EU accession process, will likely prompt England / other nations of rUK to follow suit. In other words, by bringing about Britain’s break-up, Scottish independence will be good not just for Scots but for everyone else too. It will provide an opportunity for England / rUK to overhaul their constitution, and improve the quality of democratic and accountability processes; there is now widespread recognition that the UK’s unwritten constitution is not fit for purpose, and democracy is being undermined. We therefore view the prospect of Britain’s break-up as beneficial for all. Rather surprisingly, we have seen no evidence to date of any pro-EU groups actively discussing the range of possible constitutional developments arising from the independence and reunification movements in three of the four UK nations, nor consideration of the implications for relationships with the EU; we therefore encourage pro-EU campaigners south of the border to explore such potential developments. Anthony Barnett, of Europe for Scotland, told the Break-Up of Britain’ conference in 2023: “It is … the duty of progressive England to positively urge Scotland on to independence in Europe.” The end of this dysfunctional union will hasten each individual nation’s steps towards joining the EU – that’s why we encourage Rejoiners from south of the border to support the campaign for Scottish independence; their support will be greatly welcomed by independence supporters here in Scotland. 

Here’s why Scotland back in the EU would be the best option

Posted on by Elise
SCOTLAND’S relationship with Europe is paramount. There can be no doubt that raising awareness and encouraging debate on this issue is important in preparing for independence.

It is generally thought that it would serve an independent Scotland better to join an international organisation at the earliest opportunity. Within the independence movement there has been some debate about the relative merits of joining the European Union (EU) or the European Free Trade Association (Efta) and the European Economic Area (EEA). How do these options compare?

The EEA combines all the countries of the EU and three of the current Efta countries into a single free-trade market. The fourth Efta country, Switzerland, is not in the EEA and has a separately negotiated treaty with the EU. Membership of the EEA is gained through the EU or Efta.

Efta was created in 1960 by seven countries: Austria, Denmark, Norway, Portugal, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK. It was later joined by Iceland, Finland, and Lichtenstein. Of these 10 member states, four remain and six left to join the EU.

The Efta countries are not part of the EU customs union or common agriculture and fisheries policies or various other policies. This gives them a degree of freedom to negotiate trade agreements with other countries, as long as these do not contravene existing obligations to the EU. Efta countries abide by the trading standards and laws of the EU because EEA law is in most circumstances identical in substance to EU law. Efta countries do not have ministers or seats at the Council of the EU nor the EU Parliament, and are not involved in choosing the EU Commission (the EU civil service).

The EU is the dominant force in Europe. Following the horrors of the Second World War, it was created with the aim of fostering solidarity and peace in Europe, and application for membership is open to all countries in Europe that agree with its principles and values.

Only countries with full EU membership are “rule makers”. Joining Efta, would make Scotland a “rule taker” and it would continue to suffer a democratic deficit. On this basic level, the EU would appear the better option but what other considerations are there?

It has been argued that it will be quicker to join Efta. This would be of little use as the EEA and bilateral agreements would also have to be agreed. Equally, it cannot be ruled out that Scotland, as a past member of the EU for nearly 50 years, would have a swift entry to the EU.

Either way, the suggested speed advantage of an Efta application disappears when we consider the possibility of an Association Agreement (AA) with the EU, an often-overlooked option. An AA is in essence a trade agreement that allows an applicant country to benefit from tariff-free trade and other benefits with the EU while working towards full membership.

It is noteworthy that negotiating an AA would not take long, estimated by experts from three months to a year. This renders the speed advantage for Efta membership redundant.

Many countries have struck an Association Agreement with the EU, to their considerable benefit. Having an EU Association Agreement might well shield Scotland from a resentful or otherwise hostile Westminster.

Crucially, EU membership has many other advantages over Efta membership. Being part of the EU would place Scotland at the centre of Europe, reaping the benefits of and contributing to future developments within the European social, cultural, political, economic and environmental spheres.

Would Scotland not suffer more of a democratic deficit being one of 28 nations? Small and medium-sized countries have a proportionally larger number of seats in the European Parliament, much in Scotland’s favour. In some ways, the question is irrelevant because the European Parliament works in groupings, across nations, where Scottish MEPs can join forces with similar minded MEPs from other countries. In the Council and the European Court of Justice, Scotland would be represented by one member like all the other countries, regardless of size. In many cases, a Scottish minister would have a veto, which adds to the power that Scotland would exercise.

I suspect Scots would want to play a role in European developments rather than just observing from the sidelines. Whatever happens in the EU will have a strong effect on nearly all aspects of Scottish life. Currently, the Scottish electorate appears to firmly favour EU membership by a significant margin. It works both ways: The EU would welcome what Scotland has to offer.

When it comes to Scotland’s relationship with Europe, joining the EU is probably the better option by far.

Peter Glissov, Edinburgh, 24 February 2024

The flag of Europe is a symbol of the values Scotland holds dear

Posted on by Elise
IT’S more important than ever to keep flying the flag of Europe. What follows is the untold story of the flag, human rights, and the campaign for independence.

The new Rwanda Bill is an appalling example of the UK Government’s readiness to ride roughshod over human rights
and the rule of law. It orders British judges to ignore sections of the Human Rights Act, including the right not to be
tortured, and to ignore international laws, in particular the Refugee Convention. Several Tory politicians have even
advocated for the UK to leave the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).

What’s the link with the “EU flag”? It’s true that the blue flag with a circle of yellow stars is the flag of the EU, but
that’s not how it originated, and it has an important back story which everyone needs to know if they are to hold an
informed attitude towards Europe and an independent Scotland’s future place in it. The Flag of Europe – to give it its
correct title – is a symbol of human rights, peace, democracy and the rule of law. If ever we needed a visible sign of
Scotland’s commitment to these values, it’s now.

The flag was designed for the Council of Europe (CoE) in 1955, decades before it was adopted in 1986 by the
European Economic Community, the organisation which later developed into the EU as we know it today. The CoE
itself had been created in 1949 in the aftermath of World War Two, pre-dating even the earliest origins of the EU,
which lay in the European Coal and Steel Community formed in 1951. It was established with the noble aim of
creating “a Europe of peace founded on the values of human rights, democracy and the rule of law”. It was, and still
is, a peace project. Its key focus is promoting and protecting human rights – this is useful to know, at a time when
arguably the greatest threat from the UK Government is its erosion of our human rights.

The CoE is a separate organisation from the EU, but the two cooperate closely. The EU is “the main institutional
partner of the CoE in political, legal, and financial terms”. Their relationship is described as “a strategic partnership,
which draws on a long tradition of cooperation based on their shared values: human rights, democracy and the rule
of law.” Indeed, all 27 EU countries are CoE members and no country has joined the EU without first joining the CoE.
The latter has 46 members in total including the UK, whose CoE membership was unaffected by Brexit. The sharing
of the Flag of Europe by the two organisations demonstrates that connection.

How is this story of the flag relevant to Scotland’s constitutional question? The answer lies in those values that the
flag represents. They are values that we Scots embrace. We have elected a Scottish Government that promotes
peace, human rights, democracy and the rule of law, ie the very values set out by the CoE and EU. The same cannot
be said of the UK Government given, for example, their failure to call for a ceasefire in Gaza, their overruling
of Holyrood’s democratic decisions, their unlawful prorogation of the Westminster Parliament and disregard of
international law, and, right now, their Rwanda Bill and threat to withdraw from the ECHR. In contrast, the Yes
movement’s vision of a future independent Scotland is surely one that shares the values of the CoE and the EU.

In fact, attitudes to Europe have become central to the independence campaign: the rock-solid evidence of Brexit
harm, and heightened awareness of what we have lost, makes the return to the EU a clearly desirable goal for more
than 70% of Scots, and independence is widely agreed to be the best or only route for doing so in the foreseeable
future. Pollsters tell us that the prospect of Scotland’s EU membership is key in turning many Scots from No to Yes.
At the march and rally for an independent Scotland in the EU, held by Believe in Scotland and Yes for EU in Edinburgh
in September, many folk who took part said they were No voters in 2014 but absolutely determined to get back to
the EU and therefore tending towards Yes.

So let’s see the flag in a different light: it’s not just “the EU flag”, but a meaningful, visible symbol of the values that we aspire to as an independent nation, and which we will work together with our European neighbours to realise in practice. Let’s keep reminding ourselves of those values, by ensuring that the Flag of Europe is flown and celebrated all across Scotland!

Morag Williamson, Convenor, Yes for EU

Meet the Team – David

Posted on by Elise

I was born and spent half of my childhood in Wales, the other half in England. I moved to Edinburgh in 1998 for work and immediately fell in love with Scotland & Edinburgh. At one point during this time, I was running a team that managed exports for my employer from Scotland to virtually every corner of the world, seeing and understanding at first-hand how doing business within the Single Market & Customs Union was so much easier than trading further afield. Later career moves meant I lived & worked in Sweden (briefly) with a spell working across the countries formerly part of the USSR and then the Netherlands (for a decade) and apart from living & working abroad my jobs involved a great deal of international travel across Asia, Africa, the America’s and all of Europe.

My point is I have gained some insight into the sheer quantity of paperwork needed to trade out-with the single market, and how the world is coalescing into trade blocs. I also have stood in border control passport queues on every continent (except Antarctica) and I can tell you the inter-EU travel experience with Freedom of Movement is vastly easier!


I was living in the Netherlands in 2014 so – as the franchise for IndyRef1 was residence-based – I could not vote. But if I could have voted, being honest with you, I would have voted No. Partly because I do believe we are all better when we work together, but I was also convinced that Scotland’s place in the EU could not be regained after independence against the wishes of the “former UK”. Even so I was a bit taken aback the morning after the vote to watch Cameron’s EVfEL speech on TV and over the longer term was dismayed to see the unravelling of the Vow. It got me thinking.

However, it was the Brexit referendum in 2016, without a clear proposition, with illegal dark money funding via a loophole in Northern Ireland electoral law, the theft of almost all social media account profiles in the UK, the illegal collaboration between campaign organisations and the endless lies that made me realise Scotland must make its own way and work with like-minded democratic neighbours.


Within the confines of devolved powers, the choices our elected MSP’s have made since devolution (baby boxes, free public transport for youngsters & OAP’s, free University tuition and the most progressive tax system in the UK) provide a glimpse of what an independent Scotland might look like, and that glimpse is both an intriguing and motivating vision of the Nation we could make. It’s a vision of the future I would like to see become real.