Europe Day: A Scottish Perspective
Susan Brown | Scottish Blethers
Scotland has always had strong links with Europe, dating back to when the North Sea was a land bridge before it pulled apart and flooded; to our trade routes in the Middle Ages; to our patronage of European universities since the 1500s, which brought in new ideas and ways of doing things; to the Auld Alliance between Scotland and France; and to our 20th-century alliances when war broke out in Europe.
Man with combo Scotland—European Union flag
Image | Adam Wilson, Unsplash
This is the first “Europe Day” of the 21st century that the United Kingdom, or to be more accurate, Great Britain, which does not include Northern Ireland, will not be part of the gang. I exclude Northern Ireland because they are in “no-man’s land.” They are part of the United Kingdom politically, but are part of Europe for export/import taxes and follow some EU customs rules, essentially the most complex VAT and Customs regime in Europe.
The customs border with Ireland was a huge issue in the Brexit negotiations. Europe was adamant that they did not wish to have a hard border on the island of Ireland, even though Northern Ireland would no longer be part of Europe politically. After much stalemate in negotiations, officials determined the border to be in the middle of the Irish Sea between the island of Great Britain and the island of Ireland.
Five months into the new way of working, this is already causing headaches for Northern Ireland and Scotland, especially in terms of export of farm animals and food products. There is the potential that the great British banger (sausages) will not be permitted for export between the UK and Northern Ireland from the beginning of July 2021 unless they have costly Export Health Certificates. I need to be clear here that Scotland (and Northern Ireland) did not vote in favour of Brexit. We chose not to leave the European Union, with 62% of Scots and 55.8% of people in Northern Ireland voting to remain. The overall UK result was 51.9% of the UK voting to leave and 48.1% voting to stay.
Europe Day is a bittersweet day for me. I am of the generation that had the opportunity to study and work in Europe. I had the freedom to go where I pleased for as long as I pleased, which—unless they already live there and have applied for settled status—UK citizens will no longer have.
I have exceptionally fond memories from the early nineties of two years at university and on work placement in Bordeaux, France. I was on an international business course with students from France, Germany, Holland, Spain and the UK. We studied, mixed, and socialised well, but it was always interesting to note that as soon as exams came round, we went back to our comfort zone and sat in our national groups in the exam hall. So maybe we haven’t changed that much.
Bordeaux reflections
Image | Juan di Nella, Unsplash
A few years later I spent part of my working career in Italy, Spain, Germany and an eight month project in the Champagne area of France for a large multinational company. I am saddened for future generations of students and workers who will find it harder to get these kinds of opportunities.
Europe and the United Kingdom are now moving forward separately to define their future relationships and ways of operating with each other and the wider world. There is already less co-operation in many fields including fisheries, agriculture, and policing. The ugly sight of vaccine nationalism has also reared its head. Is this really the kind of world we want to create?
Thank EU!
Image | Lāsma Artmane , Unsplash
I raise a glass to my European friends, my Continental cousins, and my colleagues in Guide Collective, and I say “thank you” for continuing to be an important part in defining who I am, challenging my world view, and being a light for how we can work together. Happy Europe Day!
I look forward to a new generation coming through that may see more sense and have a wider world view. Am I still a utopian? Maybe…
