Scotland is ‘unlikely’ to face EU veto

EUROPEAN member states are “very unlikely” to veto Scotland’s membership if it becomes independent, according to an expert on EU accession.

James Ker-Lindsay, senior research fellow at the London School of Economics (LSE), said the claim that Scotland would be blocked “does not appear to be based on any real evidence”.

Writing on the LSE’s British Politics blog, Mr Ker-Lindsay challenged those who suggest Scotland’s EU membership “cannot be taken for granted” on the grounds that five EU states, Cyprus, Greece, Romania, Slovakia and Spain, refused to recognise Kosovo.

He said: “This has led to suggestions that these countries may also refuse to accept Scottish independence and keep it out of the EU. This is very unlikely for a number of reasons.

“For a start, the problem in the case of Kosovo is not the issue of secession. It is the unilateral way in which it was done.

“If a territory becomes independent with the consent of all the parties concerned, there is little reason to believe that these countries will oppose the move.”

He pointed to the statement of congratulation sent to newly-independent South Sudan last July, without “a murmur of dissent from any of the five”.