Hansard

The Convener SNP

We move swiftly on to our first agenda item, which is the continuation of our inquiry into European Union reform and the EU referendum. Today we are looking ...

Niels Engelschiøn (Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs)

First of all, thank you very much for inviting us to Edinburgh. We are very pleased to be here. It is the first time for me, and it is a great pleasure to se...

Professor Dr Andreas Auer (Universities of Zurich and Geneva)

I, too, thank the committee very much for inviting me to this beautiful city so that I can inform members about the relationship between Switzerland and the ...

The Convener SNP

Thank you very much indeed. Dáithí, do you want to go next?

Dáithí O’Ceallaigh (Institute of International and European Affairs)

Thank you very much. I join my colleagues in thanking you for inviting me. About a year ago, the Institute of International and European Affairs, which is b...

The Convener SNP

Thank you very much. I invite questions from members.

Jamie McGrigor (Highlands and Islands) (Con) Con

I should say at the outset that I am not a Eurosceptic. I agree with the idea that the UK should stay in the EU. I find it interesting that, in Norway, some...

The Convener SNP

Who is that question for?

Jamie McGrigor Con

It is for the Norwegian witnesses primarily, but it is also for the Swiss representative.

Niels Engelschiøn

It is not entirely correct to say that the political establishment in Norway is pro-EU, because several parties in Parliament are against Norwegian membershi...

Jamie McGrigor Con

What is putting the population off Norway’s becoming a full member of the EU instead of its being, in a way, a member without having the ability to influence...

Niels Engelschiøn

I have mentioned fisheries, agriculture and the sovereignty issue. There is no precise answer—this is just speculation—but the Norwegian economy and the work...

Jamie McGrigor Con

Is there nothing that you can put your finger on and say, “They don’t like that”?

Niels Engelschiøn

No, it is difficult to say. However, given the difficult economic situation that many European countries—particularly those in the eurozone—have faced since ...

Jamie McGrigor Con

Do you think that Norwegians are particularly against joining the euro?

Niels Engelschiøn

It is about the whole thing. Eighty per cent of Norwegians would say no to EU membership because they know what they have and they do not know what membershi...

The Convener SNP

Do you want to put the same question to Professor Auer?

Jamie McGrigor Con

Yes, please. I do not want to hog the discussion, but I would like to hear the Swiss perspective.

Professor Auer

I would never consider the Swiss situation as being a solution for anyone—not even for Switzerland, which is currently in a very difficult position. Let me e...

Jamie McGrigor Con

Thank you.

The Convener SNP

Dáithí O’Ceallaigh, you have done some analysis of the other models. You mentioned both the Swiss and Norwegian models, but you also mentioned the Turkish mo...

Dáithí O’Ceallaigh

Throughout the European Union, there is an increasing general dissatisfaction with Brussels. Within all our populations, there is a feeling that the politica...

Jamie McGrigor Con

Was monetary union a bridge too far?

Dáithí O’Ceallaigh

No. The regulation of the monetary union was there without a bridge, because the individual treasuries and finance ministries were not prepared to give up th...

Willie Coffey (Kilmarnock and Irvine Valley) (SNP) SNP

I will pick up Mr O’Ceallaigh’s point about the four unions. You said that the Norwegian, Swiss and Turkish models would not lend themselves to being a UK so...

Dáithí O’Ceallaigh

I honestly think that, were the UK negotiating on its own, its position would be much weaker than it would be were the UK to remain negotiating on the inside...

Willie Coffey SNP

Partially. I would love to ask Professor Auer for his view. Professor, you have already said that the Swiss relationship is not a particularly good one for ...

Professor Auer

I am sorry, but I did not understand the question.

Willie Coffey SNP

You have said that the arrangement that Switzerland has is not a particularly good one. What relationship do you think that the UK would have with the EU if ...

Professor Auer

I am sorry, but that is a very difficult question for me to answer. I am convinced that, because it is a strong and important country, the UK could negotiate...