Spanish PM: Independent Scotland would be kicked out of the EU

Scotland would be kicked out of the European Union if it voted for independence, the Spanish Prime Minister has said in a devastating blow to Alex Salmond’s claims membership would be seamless. 

Mariano Rajoy was speaking at a joint press conference with Francois Hollande, the French President Photo: AFP/GETTY

By Simon Johnson, Scottish Political Editor

8:00PM GMT 27 Nov 2013

Mariano Rajoy said it was important that Scots were “realistic” about the consequences of a ‘yes’ vote next year and warned against “regions” of member states embarking on “solo adventures”.

Mr Rajoy's intervention is severely damaging for Mr Salmond as it would mean Scotland having to apply from scratch for EU membership, a process that would take years, and having to negotiate its own opt-out from the euro.

The Spanish Prime Minister confirmed a separate Scotland would require the consent of all 28 existing member states, including his country, to join the EU.

The Spanish government is known to be hostile to Scottish independence as it does not want to encourage its own separatist movement in Catalonia.

His comments, made in a joint press conference in Madrid with Francois Hollande, the French President, directly contracted this week’s Scottish Government White Paper on independence.



http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/10479461/Spanish-PM-Independent-Scotland-would-be-out-of-the-EU.html