THE SNP have claimed that Scotland is potentially missing out on billions of pounds worth of funding from the European Union.
Scotland currently benefits from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, which was created by the UK Government to succeed EU structural funding – with £212 million allocated to Scotland until March 2025.
The SNP have previously argued that this falls far short of equivalent EU funding, and have released figures that show countries with similar population sizes to Scotland such as Denmark, Finland and Ireland are benefitting from NextGenerationEU funding – in the form of both grants and loans.
NextGenerationEU is the EU's €800 billion fund to support the economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic and build a greener, more digital, and more resilient future. So far Denmark have been earmarked €1.6bn, Finland €2.2bn and Ireland €1.1bn.
SNP MSP Emma Harper said the figures demonstrate the “ongoing Brexit costs to Scotland” of being under Westminster control.
She added: “Scotland did not vote to leave the EU - yet our businesses and communities are suffering because of Westminster's disastrous decision-making.
“The Tory and Labour party’s destructive Brexit agendas show they continue to ignore the voice and interests of the people of Scotland.
"With all of Westminster singing from the same hymn sheet on Brexit, the only route to re-joining our European neighbours is with independence.”
