AN independent Scotland would find it "extremely difficult" if not "impossible" to join the EU, the president of the European Commission has warned.

Jose Manuel Barroso suggested that Scotland would be unlikely to get the unanimous agreement of all EU states to join.

His comments are damaging for Alex Salmond, first minister of Scotland, who has put membership of the EU at the heart of his plans for separation from the Union.

The Scottish government has claimed that following a vote for separation, they would negotiate with the EU Commission and member states for a "smooth transition" so that Scotland is a full EU member on independence day, marked as March 24, 2016. It would mean the normally lengthy process of EU accession would be fast-tracked in just 18 months.

The Scottish government argues EU laws and treaties already apply to Scotland and so membership is a matter which should be negotiated "on the basis of the principle of continuity of effect".

But Mr Barroso, whose job includes being the "guardian" of EU treaties, said an independent Scotland must apply to join like any other state, and it is highly likely that some of the EU's 28 members would object.

Spain, which fears the separation of the Catalonia region, has blocked the accession of Kosovo, another newly independent state, Mr Barroso said.

"It will be extremely difficult to get the approval of all the other member states to have a new member coming from one member state," Mr Barroso said. (© Daily Telegraph, London)

Irish Independent