David Cameron made a direct appeal yesterday to Scots to back the European Union as he warned that some of the country’s core industries, including food and farming, would be devastated by Brexit.
The prime minister used his speech to the Scottish Conservative Party conference to reprise many of his arguments against Scottish independence from 2014. He said that the party had to make the argument that Scotland was “stronger, safer and better off in a reformed Europe”.
He said: “With the world wanting to drink its whisky, eat its salmon, wear its wool, buy its electronics and use its financial services, Scotland relies on the door to the single market being wide open. There are 250,000 jobs, spanning so many Scottish sectors, that are linked to that ability to trade with Europe.”
He said that at present Scottish farmers could sell their meat, without quotas or tariffs, to a market of 500 million people, but if Britain left the EU, that could change. He said that, based on Canada’s deal with the EU, it could mean tariffs as high as 13 per cent on Scottish salmon, 40 per cent on lamb and up to 70 per cent on some beef products.
“I really think it’s time for those who want to leave to explain what Scotland would look like if we left, and to start giving voters some of these facts.
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“It’s for them to look those farmers in the eye and tell them if they’re going to have to pay tariffs, and, if so, how much.
“And it’s for us to argue that when this great exporting nation can trade with the world, people are better off with more jobs, more growth, more investment and more opportunities, all adding up to a brighter future for Scotland.”
The prime minister — who argued in 2014 that independence would lead to Scotland being thrown out of the EU — said that membership of the bloc put the country “in the driving seat on the world’s biggest issues”.
He said: “And on this, Scotland proves something important. It shows that you can be a strong, successful, proud Scot — and be part of the United Kingdom and European Union.
“Being in these two clubs doesn’t diminish Scotland’s identity. It doesn’t make you less of a Scot, or less patriotic. What matters is turning patriotism into action. Being able to get things done for the country you love. I believe that’s what we can do in a reformed Europe where we have the best of both worlds.” The Scottish Tories are far more united on Europe than their colleagues south of the Border. Only one of the MSP group supports leaving.
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The wider membership at the conference in Edinburgh’s Murrayfield stadium appeared more divided yesterday, and Mr Cameron’s section on Europe did not get a resounding response.
The EU issued loomed large over the event. There were a number of fringe meetings on it, including one addressed by Liam Fox, which was packed out, despite being at 8am. The former defence secretary and prominent Euroscpetic said the Out campaign was “something of a peasants’ revolt” coming from the UK’s grassroots. The other side, he said, “looks like the elite, the establishment” with funding from the Goldman Sachs investment bank.
Dr Fox accepted there would be “risks to leaving” if the country votes to quit the EU on June 23, but he argued there were “huge risks” to staying in. He dismissed suggestions that a vote for Brexit would spark a second independence referendum in Scotland.
Responding to the prime minister’s speech, Jack Montgomery, Scottish spokesman for the Leave.EU campaign, said: “The government will have a far easier time finding markets for Scottish produce around the world once our trade policy is no longer in the hands of an insular and protectionist European Union.”