DEFRA has repeatedly failed to fight for Scottish farming's interests in ­European negotiations, according to Holyrood's rural affairs Cabinet Secretary Richard Lochhead.

Calling for a Yes vote in the referendum, Mr Lochhead said that, in his seven years in office, he had never once witnessed Westminster's agricultural representatives use the UK's voting muscle to specifically benefit Scottish farmers.

Speaking at a public ­meeting in Forres, Moray, Mr Lochhead noted the No campaign argument that Scotland was better off being part of a bigger state, with 29 votes at its disposal, and that smaller EU member states with less votes were severely disadvantaged.

"I have attended scores of EU meetings and negotiations over the years and, watching how other countries similar in size to Scotland operate, this is certainly not my view," he said.

"The UK's 29 votes would only be useful to Scotland if they were ever actually used in Scotland's interests. I cannot recall one occasion in my seven years where the UK has used its votes for Scotland. "

"During the recent reform of the CAP, during one meeting in Brussels, the UK Minister described Scotland's key priorities to me as 'itty bitty technical issues' that could be negotiated in the margins.

"In the actual Council of Ministers meetings, much to my frustration, he raised the concerns of a sugar factory in London more than Scotland's beef and sheep sectors or other Scottish priorities."

He added that, despite being kept out of official discourse, Scotland was by no means friendless in Europe: "At a recent Council of Ministers meeting in Brussels, several EU Ministers approached me and whispered in my ear that they wished the Yes campaign the best of luck."

Responding to the charge of neglect, a Defra spokesperson said: "Scotland's food, farming and fishing industries benefit from the UK's collective negotiating weight as one of the biggest EU Member States.

"The UK represents ­Scottish interests and our power and influence in ­Brussels won Scotland the right to tailor its own CAP," she claimed.

"The UK's extensive diplomatic and trade network has been called upon to open new markets to Scottish food and drink, driving an international trade that has doubled in a decade."

For more on Scottish agriculture, see this Friday's issue of The Scottish Farmer