A report by Strathclyde University academic Professor Robert Wright argues European Union nations would insist Scotland joined the Schengen area, the passport-free zone which covers almost all of the EU.
As the UK and Ireland are not part of Schengen, Scotland would therefore no longer be part of the Common Travel Area (CTA) within the British Isles, raising the prospect of checkpoints and patrols at the Scotland- England border, he adds.
However, Prof Wright says that in this scenario, Ireland would be likely to follow suit and join Scotland in the Schengen area. That would leave the rump UK as the only EU nation outside the EU-wide free travel zone, putting it under “considerable pressure” to join, he says. » | Eddie Barnes | Thursday, October 31, 2013
