Independent Scotland would have to reapply for membership, EU says
Alex Salmond’s hopes of securing a Yes vote in the independence referendum suffered a major setback today when European officials made it clear that a separate Scotland would have to reapply for EU membership.
The Scottish First Minister has long based his nationalist ideals on the theme of “independence in Europe” and has insisted for years that an independent Scotland would not have to reapply for membership.
But today European officials warned that Scotland would leave the EU if it broke away from the United Kingdom.
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Oil revenue estimate boosts independence hopes for Salmond
Soaring North Sea oil revenues are set to give Alex Salmond a huge boost in his efforts to win independence. Scotland’s estimated share of North Sea oil revenues in 2011-12 is likely to be just short of £10 billion, the second highest offshore tax take in the past two decades.
The figures are not due to be revealed until spring as part of the annual publication of estimates of government spending and tax revenues in Scotland, one of the most hotly politically contested set of statistics on the economy.
