You WILL need a passport to travel to England after independence – EU chiefs

NICOLA Sturgeon has come under fire for her ‘nonsensical’ claim that Scots would not need a passport to travel to England under independence.

The First Minister last week unveiled her latest blueprint for breaking up Britain, insisting that, even if Scotland voted to leave the UK and was then allowed to rejoin the EU, there would no need for a ‘hard border’ with England.

Keen to disarm one of the key objections to independence, Ms Sturgeon said there would be no passport checks for those travelling over the Border. However, her statement flies in the face of established European law.

Last week the European Commission – the executive body of the EU – told The Scottish Mail on Sunday that any country joining the bloc would have to sign up to strict border controls and there is no opt-out being considered for Scotland.

The issue represents a stumbling block for nationalists hoping to win support for independence – as many Scots oppose checkpoints on the border with England.

Last night Scottish Conservative trade spokesman Jamie Halcro Johnston said: ‘The SNP is selling the Scottish public a false vision of independence. I will be submitting a parliamentary question to get to the bottom of these contradictory and potentially misleading claims, and force the SNP to come clean over their nonsensical plans.’

Under EU rules, new EU states must sign up to join the Schengen area – allowing for unhindered travel across much of the Continent. But any external border with a non-Schengen country must be maintained to prevent free movement of goods and people.

Currently citizens of the UK and Ireland are in a Common Travel Area (CTA), guaranteeing people the right to education, healthcare and to seek work. As a result, both countries were granted an opt-out of the Schengen border control rules – known as acquis – which meant passports must be shown when travelling on the Continent.

In the latest independence blueprint, the Scottish Government claimed that ‘on joining the EU, Scotland would adopt the Schengen acquis. Under the CTA, there would be no new passport or immigration checks at any of Scotland’s border points with the UK and Ireland for those travelling within it’.

The European Commission’s spokesman for economic affairs, Andrea Masini, said any country joining the Schengen area ‘must apply the acquis regarding controls of land, sea and air borders, issuing of visas, police co-operation and take responsibility for controlling external borders’.

A hard border would mean the English would have their passport stamped when crossing the Border to Scotland and mandatory visas for visits over 90 days or work.

With no borders between Scotland and the rest of Europe, Scots would probably face similar bureaucracy when heading south.

The Scottish Government said last week that, in the event of independence, checkpoints would be set up near Gretna and Berwick.

Miss Sturgeon described the likely chaos as ‘challenges we wish we didn’t have’ but said ‘technology’ would ease the problems.

SNP Europe Minister Neil Gray said: ‘Scotland will remain in the CTA because it makes sense for all parties.’

There would be no new passport or immigration checks at any of an independent Scotland’s land, sea or air border points with the UK and Ireland for those travelling within it – NICOLA STURGEON’S BLUEPRINT DOCUMENT FOR INDEPENDENCE LAST WEEK