SEEN from the perspective of English progressives, we need the Scottish campaign for independence to shift from leaving Britain to leading Wales,…
ON November 18, The Break-up Of Britain conference will be held in Edinburgh, on the future of the United Kingdom, its nations, and the European Union, inspired by the work of Tom Nairn. Here, Anthony Barnett writes on one of the key themes.I’d suggest that such a shift would transform Scotland’s referendum, when it eventually comes, into a better way for all the UK’s nations to come together, as geographically and historically linked member states within a shared European space.
How can Scotland become part of the EU’s accelerated enlargement? By calling for the EU to declare in advance that it will welcome Scotland’s re-joining should it become a recognised independent state, and asking that as a historic European country and part of the EU for 47 years, Scotland will be assisted to meet any transition costs in an accelerated accession process, since the country has long fulfilled the core requirements of an open, free and law-based society.
However, while British leaders constantly advertise their “radicalism” to mask their attachment to the status quo , the EU is different. It emphasises that the accumulated “acquis” of its laws must be adhered to in order to metamorphose itself effectively. Shapeshifting is in its nature. Indeed, its commitment to cumulative transformation is arguably the most successful revolutionary project of the 20th century.
The group’s proposal is that no disputed territory should be brought into the EU without the clear assent of a majority of its population: “The accession of countries with disputed territories within a country outside the EU will have to include a clause that those territories will only be able to join the EU if their inhabitants are willing to do so.”
Of course, persuading the leaders of the EU to make such an offer is a matter of politics based on the strength of opinion in both Scotland and the EU. The first step is to move away from the old narratives and explore how to develop a different kind of conversation; one that isn’t defined by the barking of the right-wing London media and resentful opposition to them. That’s something we’re hoping to achieve at a conference salute to Tom Nairn in Edinburgh’s Assembly Rooms on November 18.The European Union is opening the road to a historic expansion. It will be hard-fought – and every nation in the UK needs Scotland to be an early part of it.
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