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Daily Record
Daily Record
Politics
Chris McCall

Ian Blackford dismisses hard border between independent Scotland and England as 'Project Fear'

Ian Blackford has dismissed claims a hard border would be created between an independent Scotland and England as another example of "Project Fear".

The SNP leader at Westminster was speaking during a Commons debate on independence today where he claimed the UK's economic woes were the result of a Tory-imposed Brexit.

He said: "It doesn’t take a genius to know that the timeline for every bit of turmoil in this place over the last few years stems from one place and one place only - the disaster, the utter disaster, of Brexit.

"And six years on it has been a disaster by every significant measure. Brexit broke Britain."

The Nationalists are planning for a second referendum on independence to take place on October 19 - only if the UK Supreme Court rules Holyrood has the legal powers to stage such a vote.

Nicola Sturgeon has threatened to use the next general election as a "de facto" referendum on leaving the Union if her plan is struck down by judges.

Speaking in the Commons during an SNP-led debate, Blackford dismissed concerns of a hard border between Scotland and the rest of the UK.

Conservative MP David Duguid intervened on Blackford and claimed Sturgeon had "admitted that there could be hard borders, passport control, between Scotland and the rest of the United Kingdom".

Blackford responded: "Here we go. Project fear all over again. Let me give the honourable gentleman in this House the example of Ireland – way back in the 1940s close to 90 per cent of Ireland’s exports were to the rest of the United Kingdom.

"Today, it’s less than 10 per cent. But the value of Irish exports to the UK actually increased, every single year, irrespective of the economic cycle.

"But the point is that an independent Ireland was able to pursue policies that delivered growth, that resulted in investment, that resulted in trade opportunities."

Ian Murray, Labour's shadow Scottish secretary, said under the SNP’s plans an independent Scotland would have a "separate currency" to both the EU and the rest of the UK.

He said: "The current position of the SNP is to stick with the pound for an undefined period, to then set up their own currency and as Nicola Sturgeon said herself when she launched the economic paper, she will not commit to joining the Euro.

"So that does one of two things: it either denies EU membership on the one hand, or it means an independent Scotland would have a separate currency from both the EU and its bigger trading partner, the rest of the UK."

Scotland Secretary Alister Jack claimed the SNP was not respecting the result of the 2014 independence referendum and said their continued campaigning on the issue acts as a “millstone” around the neck of Scotland’s economy.

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