NICOLA Sturgeon’s plan for Scotland to stay in both the European single market and customs union after Brexit is “almost impossible”, a leading expert has warned.
The First Minister’s detailed proposals for a soft exit for Scotland were already facing huge political challenges, not least from the British Government.
Dr Kirsty Hughes, of the think-tank Friends of Europe, has spotted what she believes may be an insurmountable bureaucratic hurdle.
Read more: Theresa May makes clear UK's departure from EU will not be 'half in, half out'
Ms Sturgeon and her experts propose that the country could join the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), the grouping of Norway, Iceland, Switzerland and Liechtenstein, which are part of the single market but not the European Union.
This means they abide by single market rules, including free movement of people, but have customs formalities, which may not be barriers or roadside posts, for any trade crossing borders.
But Ms Sturgeon and her team also wanted Scotland to be in the EU’s customs union, allowing customs-free trade on industrial goods. It includes Turkey, which is not in the EU or in the EFTA.
Dr Hughes quoted an anonymous Swiss official as saying: “The EFTA States are not and cannot be part of the EU’s customs union.”
Read more: Theresa May makes clear UK's departure from EU will not be 'half in, half out'
She added: “The Scottish Government’s first option – of the UK staying in the EU single market and customs union – appears impossible. And while the UK looks clearly set to leave the EU’s single market, its position on the customs union is not yet clear.
“If the UK stayed in the EU customs union, Scotland could not be in both EFTA and the EU customs union raising a potential problem for pan-UK trade – unless it was independent and in the EU (and so in the customs union).”
Dr Hughes said that nuances over EFTA and the customs union had not been noticed by experts and officials in London, Brussels and Edinburgh.
One Norwegian politician has already signalled that a non- independent Scotland would not be welcome in EFTA, but the Faroes is an example of a non-sovereign state on the European stage.
Read more: Theresa May makes clear UK's departure from EU will not be 'half in, half out'
A government spokeswoman said: “Brexit is unprecedented and so calls for unprecedented solutions.The detailed proposals we published last month are designed to keep Scotland in the European single market – which is around eight times bigger than the UK’s alone – even if the rest of the UK leaves. That is absolutely essential for Scottish jobs, investment and long-term economic wellbeing.”
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel