While the majority of Scots want to rejoin the EU, street campaigning shows that the biggest obstacle to voting ‘Yes’ to independence, is the fear of isolation. People are worried that Scotland could spend years outside the EU, while attempts at accession are thwarted by states worried about vocal separatist groups. Six pro-EU activists went to the European Parliament to find out whether these fears are well founded.
When Keir Starmer said “Britain will not rejoin the EU in my lifetime”, prior to the last general election, my heart sank. After all, 62% of Scots had voted to remain in the EU in 2016, and since then, some polls have put the Scottish pro-EU sentiment at more than 70%.
Furthermore, there is clear evidence that Scottish people would be more likely to vote for independence, if EU membership was also on the ballot paper. But would the EU27 want Scotland back in the EU, without the rest of the UK? If so, how long would it take, and what barriers would we need to overcome? In April 2025, I joined a group of pro-EU activists on a visit to the European Parliament to find out.
It could take less than two years
The activists were from two grassroots groups: Yes for EU and Europe for Scotland, plus two former Scottish MEPs, Alyn Smith and Heather Anderson. We started by contacting current MEPs who had previously shown support for Scotland. Ten of them agreed to meet with us, so we were able to book a room in the European Parliament, a month before Europe Day. In the event, seven MEPs and five MEPs’ Parliamentary Assistants, mainly from left of centre parties (Greens/European Free Alliance group; Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats; Volt Europa; Renew/Fianna Fáil), came to speak with us. They were all enthusiastic about the possibility of Scotland rejoining the EU, following independence, and some were willing to state their views on camera – watch here. We were told that it could take less than two years to rejoin the EU, depending on how much divergence from EU standards takes place in the interim, and how well Reform UK does in the upcoming Scottish elections.
Reform UK is currently polling at around 17% in Scotland, with most of their supporters situated in the Highlands and Islands (20%), as well as in North East Scotland (18%).
MEPs want to visit Scotland
The MEPs surprised us even more when they said that they would like to plan a series of weekend visits to Scotland, starting this autumn, in order to strengthen ties with Scottish politicians, academics and civil society. They are keen to share ideas with those who have expertise in renewables, trade, education/Erasmus+, organic farming, passivhaus standards, culture and language. Please get in touch, via yesforeu@gmail.com if you have expertise in any of these areas and would like to get involved.
Watch the Scottish Independence Podcasters’ video of our visit to the European Parliament here: EU keeping a light on for Scotland.
The pdf report on the visit is available here.
Thanks to the Scottish Independence Foundation and the Coppieters Foundation for their financial support for this project.
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