Scotland in Europe: comments from #EGP25

This past weekend, Glasgow and the Scottish Greens welcomed the European Green Party Council to the Strathclyde Technology and Innovation Centre. It was a great opportunity to see old friends again, like Ska Keller MEP and Mar Garcia, and to meet lots of new green friends from many green parties across the continent. I had the honour to welcoming the EGP Council to Scotland at a press conference on the Friday morning, and this is what I said.

Good morning everyone, and thank you for coming along today. I am Maggie Chapman, Co-convener of the Scottish Greens, and it is a huge pleasure to welcome Monica [Frassoni, the Co-Chair of the EGP] and the European Green Party Council to Glasgow this weekend.

The timing of this event, as far as we are concerned, could not be better. With so much political turmoil and instability in the UK following the EU referendum, it is important that we show solidarity: solidarity within and across state borders, with all those who believe that we must stand up for equality and diversity, against racism and bigotry, and work together to protect the principles of respect and dignity for all people that are at the heart of the European Project.

So, we stand together today, at what I think is the largest pro-European event to take place in Scotland since June, perhaps ever.

Scotland’s position is very clear: we voted, by 62% to 38%, to remain part of the European Union. Every single local authority area returned a Remain vote. Respecting the will and the interests of the people of Scotland is clear: it means doing what we can to remain a part of the EU.

And we are only too well aware that there is no clear plan following the Leave vote in England and Wales. Many of the promises of the Leave campaign have been revealed as misinformed or outright misrepresentations of the economic impact leaving the EU will have on all parts of the UK. Recent evidence done by academics at Strathclyde university, just down the road, suggests leaving the Single Market would mean 80,000 lost jobs and a £2,000 drop in the average wage in Scotland. Given the years of austerity and cuts we have already faced from Westminster, it is clear that our communities cannot absorb further economic hits.

So, we’ve got a lot of work to do. We must work with other political parties, campaign groups and individuals within Scotland, as well as build stronger links with the extensive Green network of politicians and campaigners across Europe who share our goal of staying in Europe. We’ll hear more from Nicola Sturgeon later on today, but she has been pushing for Scotland to have a say in the UK’s Brexit talks with the EU. We are supportive of her efforts in this.

We remain in favour of independence for Scotland, both as a way to retain EU membership and to achieve a fairer Scotland for all who live here. Our commitment to a Scotland that is open and outward facing, that welcomes people regardless of their origin or ethnicity remains strong. We believe that Brexit has been and is continuing to be weaponised to attack these values. We in the Green movement are clear that we will not be bystanders in such attacks.

So, the Brexit process gives us as an added cause for urgency – we will support moves by the Scottish Government to prepare legislation for another independence referendum, if this proves necessary. However, we are still willing to consider, along with others, whether other options, short of independence, exist that respect the mandate for Scotland to remain in the EU.

Scottish Greens, today, reaffirm our commitment to build a better, more democratic and more participative Europe that has environmental, social and economic justice at its heart. We have asserted since the European referendum: Scotland is an ancient European nation. We voted overwhelmingly to remain in the EU. Yet we face being dragged out, against our will by an uncaring Tory government we didn’t elect.  

We are not simply going to stand by and let this happen. We have been fighting since the 24th of June to keep Scotland where we belong: at the heart of Europe. And we are grateful to our European Green comrades for their support.