THE facts show that the interests of the people of Scotland are best served by voting on June 23 to stay in Europe. And that stands whether we remain part of the UK, or choose to be an independent country in future.

The gains of being in the European Union touch all parts of Scottish society. These include rights for families such as maternity and paternity leave, protection for workers including health and safety standards and paid holiday leave, a boost to business from guaranteed access to the single market, educational opportunities for young people, and freedoms for older people such as pension rights across EU countries.

In addition, being in Europe means that Scots can get access to healthcare and social services at no extra cost right across the EU. That benefits everyone, particularly those who need care the most.

Our quality of life is better and horizons broader by keeping our place in the European Union. In my own field of public health, for example, EU measures on air and water quality help us to improve the health of people in this country.

Of course the EU isn’t perfect, and there are aspects of it we don’t like. But the gains of being in clearly outweigh the costs, and it is better to work for change from within rather than have to sign up to the rules of access from outside, having thrown our voice away.

In present circumstances, the alternative to common decision-making at European level is for Westminster to have the powers in most areas and act alone, which I don’t think the majority of people in Scotland would regard as an attractive prospect.

As well as domestic politics, there is a big vision at the heart of being in Europe.

The EU’s greatest success has been preserving peace in Europe by promoting co-operation. We take it for granted, but it is something we should all be immensely proud of and seek to build on, not walk away from.

We face a huge number of immense problems – economic, social and environmental – that are far bigger than any one country’s ability to solve. We can achieve far more for Europe and the wider world by countries coming together and working together. I remain supportive of Scotland playing such a role in its own right, but that is not the issue in this referendum, it is about Europe in or out.

The 1992 Maastricht Treaty made us all European as well as nation-state citizens, and the positive case lies with keeping our European citizenship.

The Leave side inflate figures on costs, but for every £1 we put into the EU we get almost £10 back through increased investment, trade, jobs, growth and lower prices. That represents a good deal.

In the independence referendum, both sides stressed the importance of staying in Europe.

In this referendum, the people of Scotland can come together to make our voice heard and perhaps make the difference in achieving a UK-wide vote to remain in Europe.


Harry Burns is is the professor of global public health at Strathclyde University and was previously Chief Medical Officer for Scotland. He backs remaining in Europe

Jim Sillars: Capital calls the tune in EU – that’s why we should go

The National View: Voters deserve a balance of viewpoints in the run-up to the EU referendum