AN independent Scotland would seek to be the “polar opposite” of a “hostile” Westminster when it comes to migration policy, ministers have said.
Launching the sixth paper in the Building a New Scotland series, Independence Minister Jamie Hepburn said the Government would “not seek to replicate” UK policy “in any form”.
Speaking in Dundee after the 60-page paper was published, Social Justice Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville set out how ministers would seek to create a “flexible” system to attract migrants to Scotland and deal with a declining population.
The paper itself criticised Westminster for not only “ignoring” the population decline in Scotland, but making it worse.
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“Scottish ministers propose that independence would now be the only way to mitigate the risk of population decline - with control of our own policy on migration, resuming free movement as an EU member state and retaining free movement with Ireland and the UK through the Common Travel Area,” it reads.
While speaking with stakeholders at the V&A museum, Hepburn said it was an “anathema” to have a hostile public policy, such as Westminster’s when it comes to migration.
Speaking to journalists after the launch, the Independence Minister said: “Frankly the notion of your starting point, in virtually any area of public policy as being hostile seems a strange position to start from there.
“That is very much the case in relation to [Westminster] migration policy.
“So we would not seek to replicate that in any form, we want to be a welcoming society, the direct polar opposite of the direction of what we've seen, in terms of the UK Government, in terms the practical application of its policies, and reflect that in terms of their approach to asylum in particular, for example, our perspective is that people would come here seeking asylum should be able to get into employment and seek work.
“But more fundamentally, just in terms of the approach taken and the rhetoric we would deploy, we would never utilise such language.”
The paper set out a number of potential new visa routes to attract people to live and work in an independent Scotland. The Live in Scotland route would allow migrants to come to Scotland without employer sponsorship, on a visa that would give “credit for a broad range of characteristics”, such as age, education, skills, and knowledge of Gaelic or English.
The "Scottish Connections" visa would allow an “immediate route” of entry for those with former residence in Scotland, “ancestral connection”, former graduates and British nationals who are not British citizens. There would also be a family visa route and for those who have secured employment.
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Asked if the mention of “characteristics” meant a points-based system, Hepburn told journalists: “We've not gone into the specific details of that. One of the things that we're seeking to do in these papers is what could be possible in an independent Scotland, certainly give a sense of direction in terms of what we would do if we constitute the government of an independent Scotland. It’s quite right to say there's further details to come.
“What we want to do with these papers, of course, is spark and stimulate the conversation, discourse with those who have an interest in it.”
He added that ministers would seek to design a system that fits Scotland’s requirements.
Somerville added: “I think the important aspect of what it does is say that criteria, and again, for that criteria to be flexible.
“It's one of the key aspects about why migration is so important is that the economic imperative for Scotland to have a good migration policy, and to be welcoming people in here.
“Clearly employers themselves will have their views and these will change over time, around what is needed within Scotland.”
The Social Justice Secretary added that this wasn’t simply about high-skilled jobs, but about a variety of different skills based on the “economic needs of Scotland”.
“That criteria, as I say, will undoubtedly change over time as we have industries which Scotland developed, life sciences, gaming, cybersecurity and so on, which have shown that we can really lead from the front in emerging industries and that might mean the criteria will change over time, just as our economic needs change,” she added.
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