In the speech that the Prime Minister was due to deliver on Friday – and let me record my support for David Cameron's decision to postpone it because of the pressing urgency of the Algerian crisis – he was reportedly going to say that the UK risked "drifting towards the exit" of the European Union.
Indeed it does – underlining the point that the real question mark about Scotland's place in Europe comes from being governed by the Westminster system, and therefore from a No vote in next year's independence referendum.
I agree with Nick Clegg's comment last week that uncertainty about the UK's position in the EU could have a "chilling effect" on jobs and investment – although the irony of Mr Clegg being the Deputy Prime Minister in a government that is presiding over this very uncertainty will not be lost on people.
Being an integral part of the single European market is of particular importance to Scotland – not least because, as the Ernst & Young survey has recorded two years in a row, Scotland is the top-performing part of the UK in terms of winning inward investment jobs.
Thanks to the professionalism of our inward investment and trade promotion body Scottish Development International, Scotland succeeds disproportionately across the nations and regions of the UK in securing these new jobs.
Put bluntly, we cannot allow a situation to develop where Scotland suffers disproportionately from the "chilling effect" described by Mr Clegg.
The reality is that David Cameron is not basing his European position on the interests of the UK economy, never mind the Scottish economy. It is a crude political calculation – an attempt to concoct a formula to counteract the threat posed to Tory votes south of the Border by UKIP.
We may have something of the same opportunistic approach from Labour – earlier this month, a former Labour Party official wrote that Ed Miliband is "seriously toying with the idea of calling for an in-out referendum on Europe", on the basis that were he to "successfully outflank the Tories from the Right on such an explosive issue, the implications for David Cameron would be incalculable".
We have a different – and, I believe, better – politics in Scotland, across parties: inclusive, outward-looking and, because it is in our interests, pro-European.
We can never be complacent, but while UKIP is dictating the terms of the European debate south of the Border, it has never moved beyond the far fringes of Scottish politics.
At the last European election in 2009, UKIP moved into second place UK-wide in its share of the vote. In Scotland, it came last behind the Tories, Liberal Democrats and Greens. The party lost its deposit in every seat it contested in Scotland in the 2010 UK General Election and the 2011 Scottish Parliament election.
While it is getting record poll ratings south of the Border, in Scotland UKIP barely registers. Scotland is a European nation, and our position in the EU should not be determined by politicians at Westminster looking over their shoulder in electoral fear.
Of course, for all that they understand the economic benefits of EU membership, people also want to know that our national interests within the EU are protected. That is why we should aspire to equality of status in Europe as an independent member state, so that we can do exactly what every other EU country does – speak with our own voice, deploy our own votes, negotiate our national priorities, and protect and promote our vital interests.
Of the 27 existing EU member states, 20 are small countries – 11 of them a similar size or smaller than Scotland. We need only look to Ireland at present – which holds the presidency of the EU for the first half of 2013 – to see the clout every country wields, regardless of size.
To a large extent, influence comes from respect – and the UK is fast losing the respect of our European friends and partners. Obama's America has added its voice to European concerns.
I believe that an independent Scotland – with our rich array of resources, talented people, and world-class learning institutions – will be a respected member of the European family. Scotland will benefit from being part of the European Union – and Europe as a whole will benefit from Scotland.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article