A UK Government minister has claimed the future of the Scottish fishing industry could be plunged into doubt if the nation becomes independent.
Scottish Secretary Alistair Carmichael predicted yesterday that Spain could veto Scotland’s application to join the EU unless it won major new North Sea fishing rights.
He suggested EU entry talks could threaten the principle of “relative stability”, which is quotas based on historical practice, as well as the fishing grounds known as the “Shetland box”. The SNP dismissed the claims, saying the northern isles MP should “check his facts” as European fisheries rules would not be rewritten.
Nationalists say Scotland could negotiate EU entry as a current member, and effectively be fast-tracked, but pro-UK figures believe it would be a longer and more complex process.
Entry would require the agreement of all 28 member states, with Spain thought to be the most likely to object because of the boost Scottish independence could give to the nationalist movement in Catalonia.
The UK Government will publish its latest analysis paper on independence tomorrow, with the report focussed on international institutions such as the EU.
Speaking to journalists in Westminster on the eve of its publication, Mr Carmichael said: “Spain has long wanted access to North Sea fishing rights for its fleet as part of the Common Fisheries Policy.
“I ca-nnot think Spain would be very keen to offer Scottish fishermen the deal that they get as being part of the United Kingdom.”
A spokesman for Rural Affairs Secretary Richard Lochhead said: “Scotland as an independent EU member state would be entitled to its ‘relative stability’ share of EU quota, it is not a UK-linked benefit to be lost by becoming independent from the UK.
“There is therefore no likelihood that another member state such as Spain would be able to acquire any change in these allocations in order to gain free access to our waters.”
Scottish Fishermen’s Federation chief executive, Bertie Armstrong, said: “The fishing industry has extensive knowledge of how the Brussels system works and it’s wrong to imagine that this is a group of friends amicably discussing a split-up of assets. It goes without saying that with any constitutional change there would be a negotiation that would surely involve fisheries.”
EU timeframe, Page 14