Royal Society of Edinburgh Press Release 16 March 2013

Enlightening the Constitutional Debate: Scotland and the European Union

The first of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE) discussion events, in partnership with the British Academy (BA), on Enlightening the Constitutional Debate took place this week on the 13th March. Over 150 people attended the event. The event was chaired by the journalist Peter Jones and introductory speeches were made by Professor Neil Walker, Graham Avery and Professor Diana Panke. Neil Walker said that there had been a sense of certainty from both sides of the debate: from the Scottish Government that an independent Scotland would automatically be a member of the European Union; and from the UK Government the assertion that Scotland would need to apply as a new member. In reality he suggested that the question of the membership of an independent Scotland would be about politics, rather than legality. He recognised the importance of politics around issues such as currency, budget contribution, and the concerns of some countries about independence movements within their own borders. He also recognised that many questions remained on the table with regard to these and other topics. Graham Avery, who had been involved in over 20 accession negotiations while working for the European Commission, suggested that it was absurd and unlikely that an independent Scotland would have to go through the same accession process as a country that had never been a member. He believed that a common sense approach would be adopted, such as the case with the reunification of East and West Germany, where East Germans became EU citizens without a lengthy accession process. He recognised though that there would need to be treaty amendments to take account of Scotland as an independent state. He did not believe Scotland would be obliged to join the Euro. Some issues such as fisheries and budgetary contributions could be subject to difficult negotiations. Diana Panke spoke from her own research experience of the influence of small states on EU policy. She indicated that in her research it was not always the case that the size of a country was the most important determinant of success in negotiations. Often it was which countries adopted the most effective strategies and built alliances. Many small countries can be influential. The limiting factor is not necessarily the representation in Brussels, but the capacity of home based Ministries to develop negotiating positions across the whole range of policy areas. This leads to the smaller nations becoming more focussed on policy areas where they have the resources to hand to make an impact. The question and answer session then ranged widely over a number of topics, including: the process of treaty changes; Scotlands treaty obligations; the Euro; the implications if the rest of the UK chose to leave the EU; and whether the negotiation period envisaged by the Scottish Government is realistic. The chair Peter Jones also questioned whether it is realistic to expect that the current UK budget rebate would survive the accession negotiation process for an independent Scotland. A full video of this event will be available on the RSE website from Tuesday 19 March and a written report will be available by mid April. Further events in Scotland hosted by the RSE will be on: Defence and International Relations; The Real Economy; Culture & Broadcasting; Borders, Immigration and Citizenship; Science and

Higher Education; and, Public Services and Welfare. There will also be three smaller policy forums in London on: Tax and Spending; Monetary Policy; and, Historical, Legal & Constitutional Issues. Details of these events will be available on the RSE and BA websites.

-ENDS-

Editors notes:

For more information, please contact Bristow Muldoon at the RSE on bmuldoon@royalsoced.org.uk, 0131 240 2787 or 07766 915218 or for the London events, Kate Rosser Frost, Press & Communciations Manager at the British Academy on k.rosserfrost@britac.ac.uk or 020 7969 5263.

In 2012, the Society and the Academy convened a conference on Scotland and the United Kingdom to provide a platform for a frank and informed discussion on this topic. The conference, held over two days in Edinburgh and London, was attended by a range of academic and policy experts. The report on the events Scotland and the United Kingdom was published last September and is a record of the views expressed by the speakers and attendees at those events. It does not represent an established position of either the BA or the RSE. The BA and the RSE are both independent organisations with no party-political agenda or positions. We believe that it is important that the series of events is drawn to the attention of all of the major political parties and the two main campaign groups that have been established to contest the referendum. As such the Presidents of the BA and the RSE have written jointly to leading figures on both sides of the debate.

The Royal Society of Edinburgh, established by Royal Charter in 1783, is the National Academy of Scotland. It has a multi-disciplinary Fellowship of over 1500 and is dedicated to the Advancement of Useful Knowledge. It runs a wide range of programmes including policy advice, events, educational outreach and also awards Enterprise and Research Fellowships. Further information about the Society can be found at www.royalsoced.org.uk.

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