Meeting of the Parliament 16 December 2020
The best arrangement for Scotland in trading with the EU is to do so as a member of the EU. Independence is therefore the answer to Michelle Ballantyne’s question.
We have always been clear that the best option for the UK as a whole would have been to remain in the European Union. It is with regret that we find ourselves in the position that we are in today. Throughout the Brexit process, we have pressed the UK Government to seek the closest possible relationship with the EU. A compromise solution, whereby the UK, or at least Scotland, would have stayed in the single market and the customs union would have been the least worst outcome. Unfortunately, the Prime Minister has been set on achieving the hardest of Brexits, with only the most minimalistic of free trade agreements still possible. Nonetheless, we continue to urge the UK Government to avert disaster.