Scottish independence - Nationalists can expect a stiff grilling

As the vote on Scottish independence moves closer — it’s set for September — the dizzying manifestos proposed in the wine bars off Edinburgh’s beautiful Princes Street, or along the glens and river banks of stately Perthshire, can expect ever more rigorous scrutiny.

Those who champion independence will have the implications of secession from Britain and, at this hypothetical point, the European Union spelt out in ever more uncompromising terms. A price will be put on independence. It will be a daunting, intimidating one.

The weekend intervention of European Commission president José Manuel Barroso, who warned that states breaking away from EU countries would struggle to gain EU membership, was just an early shot across Scottish nationalists’ bows. It is unlikely to be the last or the most difficult one to deal with.