Independence ‘offers route back into EU for Scots farmers’

Scotland’s first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, believes independence would provide the opportunity to rejoin the EU and allow Scottish farmers to regain access to the single market.

Ms Sturgeon wants to hold a second referendum on Scottish independence next year, but Boris Johnson’s Conservatives are intent on blocking the plans.

Brexit was causing “so much damage to Scotland, in general, and to the agriculture sector and farming community”, she said.

See also: Food security moves to heart of Scottish government policy

But rejoining the EU with a seat at the top table to argue the case for the future of the Common Agricultural Policy or the Common Fisheries Policy was a better solution than being outside, but still affected by many of the decisions being taken, she insisted.

“Independence for me, part of it is about opening up that European market for our food producers and for our economy more generally and working with European partners on some of the challenges we are facing,” Ms Sturgeon told journalists at the Royal Highland Show on Friday 24 June.

Scottish farmers are suffering through a Brexit they did not vote for, she said. Whereas independence would allow Scotland to elect its own governments and not have policies imposed that they did not vote for.

Independence ‘no break-up’

Ms Sturgeon denied that independence would “break up” the union.

“The British Isles is a geographic entity. Scotland is not going anywhere, we are still going to be here, but we will co-operate with the other governments of the British Isles on a basis of equality where we take our own decisions and collaborate where that is in our interests,” she said.

Ms Sturgeon said independence would be the “polar opposite” of Brexit. “I want Scotland to go back into the EU and benefit from the biggest single market in the world.

“My party [SNP] is the most pro-immigration party probably in the entire UK, whereas Brexit largely was fought on an anti-immigration platform.”

Addressing a QMS Scotland breakfast briefing, held earlier at the show, Ms Sturgeon said farming “is not just important, but essential and integral to the success of the entire nation”.

The crisis in Ukraine had highlighted the importance of farmers as food producers, she added.

But Scottish secretary Alister Jack described the SNP’s plans for a second independence referendum as a “wheeze”. He said the UK constitution is a reserved matter for the Westminster government.