01.08.2016
The Scottish Parliament Committee investigating the implications for Scotland leaving the EU has extended its inquiry and today issued a call for views in order to get more evidence on the impact of the vote.
MSPs on the European and External Relations Committee have called on businesses, organisations and individuals from across Scotland to engage with the Committee.
This newly published call for evidence follows work undertaken by the Committee during summer recess and they will shortly publish an interim report on the work it has done to date in order to inform UK and Scottish Ministers in their ongoing negotiations.
Convener of the European and External Relations Committee, Joan McAlpine MSP, said:
“Our initial evidence-taking has only just scratched the surface of identifying the true impact on Scotland as a result of the Brexit, but it's clear much more work is needed. This is why the Committee has today asked for more views from across Scotland on how leaving the EU will impact upon them.
“Scotland is interconnected with the EU across a number of areas. From people, to investment, students, research and regional development funding to name a few. We need to understand both in the long and short term how Scotland will change as a result of this vote.
“More importantly when we hear from the Scottish and UK Ministers later on this year, we will put to them some of the initial views we have heard in order to seek to influence the long and lengthy negotiations that will now follow.”
As part of this work they are also looking for what alternatives to EU membership may exist in order to explore all the possible options on the table. MSPs also want to probe the impact of Scotland leaving the EU on devolution.
The EERC is looking for views on the following issues:
- the alternatives to EU membership
- the implications of these alternatives for Scotland
- how the withdrawal process might be managed at the EU and UK level
- what steps would be involved in this process and how individual policy fields might be dealt with
- the amount of time that might be required to deal with the negotiations
- how the interests of Scotland and the other constituent parts of the United Kingdom can be represented in those negotiations and what role the Scottish Government should have in those negotiations
- the positions likely to be taken by other Member States in the negotiations
- the implications for the devolution settlement of withdrawal from the EU
- the implications for UK and Scots law of a withdrawal from the EU, particularly the need to repeal legislation and prepare new legislation to fill the gaps left by EU legislation
- the scale of the task and the implications for the Scottish Government and Scottish Parliament
- the impact on Scotland’s economy of termination of ESIF support and access to the Horizon 2020 programme
- the implications for Scotland’s funding settlement of withdrawal from the EU
- the position of EU citizens in Scotland in the event of withdrawal from the EU
- the extent to which EU citizens in Scotland have acquired rights
- the contribution that EU citizens make to Scotland’s economy and society
The initial deadline for receipt of written submissions is Monday 5 September.
Background
The Committee will issue an interim report in August of the initial evidence they have heard so far but all the evidence gathered from this call for views will inform the Committee’s future work.