--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If the U.K. were threatening to withdraw…" description: "\"If the U.K. were threatening to withdraw from Europe, I would certainly want Scotland to be out of that.\" — Peter Higgs" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/566/peter-higgs-16967_europe_if-the-u-k-were-threatening-to-withdraw_2969372.jpg" --- # If the U.K. were threatening to withdraw from Europe, I… ![“If the U.K. were threatening to withdraw from Europe, I would certainly want Scotland to be out of that.” quote by Peter Higgs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/566/peter-higgs-16967_europe_if-the-u-k-were-threatening-to-withdraw_2969372.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/566/peter-higgs-16967_europe_if-the-u-k-were-threatening-to-withdraw_2969372.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/566/peter-higgs-16967_europe_if-the-u-k-were-threatening-to-withdraw_2969372.jpg) > “If the U.K. were threatening to withdraw from Europe, I would certainly want Scotland to be out of that.” [Peter Higgs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-higgs/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. If the UK leaves Europe, Scotland should also exit. **In simple terms:** Scotland should follow UK’s EU exit. Key Takeaway Advocate for regional autonomy. Themes politics nationalism independence policy Mood analytical serious Type political opinion When to use this quote - referendums - constitutional debates - public opinion Key Concepts self‑determination regional governance Questions to Reflect On - What are Scotland’s unique concerns? - How to respect differing opinions? A Different Perspective Complex inter‑regional relations may differ. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Europe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/europe/) [Europe Certainly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/europe-certainly-895939/) [Scotland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scotland/) [Threatening](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/threatening/) [Threatening Withdraw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/threatening-withdraw-4564092/) [Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want/) [Want Scotland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want-scotland-1403696/) [Withdraw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/withdraw/) [Withdraw Europe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/withdraw-europe-878338/) ## Related quotes > [You could say that the vote to withdraw from Europe is, it's really a vote of the British middle class, the working class, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-hudson/you-could-say-that-the-vote-to-withdraw-from-europe-is-it-s-really-a/) [Michael Hudson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-hudson/) > [Europe has certainly lost confidence in itself. This was something that, when I was a young man, we never imagined would happen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-henri-levy/europe-has-certainly-lost-confidence-in-itself-this-was-something/) [Bernard-Henri Levy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-henri-levy/) > [In the long run, Europe will certainly move toward unification. But it will be a process of push and pull, and there will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-davies/in-the-long-run-europe-will-certainly-move-toward-unification-but-it/) [Norman Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-davies/) > [The mishandling of the migration question in Europe has certainly created a very fertile ground for protest parties.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-kurz/the-mishandling-of-the-migration-question-in-europe-has-certainly/) [Sebastian Kurz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-kurz/) > [I want there to be another independence referendum at some stage. I want Scotland to be independent, but I wouldn't choose to have it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicola-sturgeon/i-want-there-to-be-another-independence-referendum-at-some-stage-i/) [Nicola Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicola-sturgeon/) > [I desperately want Scotland to be an independent country. I cannot, though, sit here and tell you definitively that it will happen, and that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicola-sturgeon/i-desperately-want-scotland-to-be-an-independent-country-i-cannot/) [Nicola Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicola-sturgeon/) > [As first minister, I want Scotland also to lead on tackling one of the root causes of gender-based abuse - toxic masculinity - to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/humza-yousaf/as-first-minister-i-want-scotland-also-to-lead-on-tackling-one-of-the/) [Humza Yousaf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/humza-yousaf/) > [In Scotland, we're a colony in more ways than one. So when directors come up to work, there's a very particular way they want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-mullan/in-scotland-we-re-a-colony-in-more-ways-than-one-so-when-directors/) [Peter Mullan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-mullan/) > [People don't want to go back to the days, pre-referendum, when the Westminster establishment sidelined and ignored Scotland. They want Scotland's voice to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicola-sturgeon/people-don-t-want-to-go-back-to-the-days-pre-referendum-when-the/) [Nicola Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicola-sturgeon/) > [People in Scotland want to have Scotland in the UK and the UK in the EU, and that's what the Liberal Democrats are arguing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jo-swinson/people-in-scotland-want-to-have-scotland-in-the-uk-and-the-uk-in-the/) [Jo Swinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jo-swinson/) > [I don't want Scotland to be more important than England. There's just a cancer of low self-esteem in Scotland and a general feeling that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/limmy/i-don-t-want-scotland-to-be-more-important-than-england-there-s-just/) [Limmy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/limmy/) > [I've not hidden and I'll never hide the fact that I want Scotland to be an independent country. But as long as we're part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicola-sturgeon/i-ve-not-hidden-and-i-ll-never-hide-the-fact-that-i-want-scotland-to/) [Nicola Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicola-sturgeon/) > [We used to go up and see my grandparents in Helensburgh all the time and I still do to this day. It's a place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-mctominay/we-used-to-go-up-and-see-my-grandparents-in-helensburgh-all-the-time/) [Scott McTominay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-mctominay/) > [I want to go to Scotland in particular. If I had a bucket list, that would be on my bucket list.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-izzo/i-want-to-go-to-scotland-in-particular-if-i-had-a-bucket-list-that/) [Tom Izzo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-izzo/) > [“But both courses are to be avoided; you should not copy the bad simply because they are many, nor should you hate the many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca/but-both-courses-are-to-be-avoided-you-should-not-copy-the-bad-simply/) [Seneca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca/) ## More by Peter Higgs > [I'm a fan of supersymmetry, largely because it seems to be the only route by which gravity can be brought into the scheme. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-higgs/i-m-a-fan-of-supersymmetry-largely-because-it-seems-to-be-the-only/) [Peter Higgs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-higgs/) > [As a theoretician, I am proud to be part of a counter revolution... discovering that quantum field theory language was not dead and finished…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-higgs/as-a-theoretician-i-am-proud-to-be-part-of-a-counter-revolution/) [Peter Higgs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-higgs/) > [The Nobel Prize has been a disturbance at the beginning of October for some years. It would be gratifying to win, but it would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-higgs/the-nobel-prize-has-been-a-disturbance-at-the-beginning-of-october/) [Peter Higgs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-higgs/) > [I was already, I think, at the age of 18, showing signs of being incompetent in the lab.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-higgs/i-was-already-i-think-at-the-age-of-18-showing-signs-of-being/) [Peter Higgs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-higgs/) > [That name was a kind of joke, and not a very good one. An author, Leon Lederman, wanted to call it 'that goddamn particle'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-higgs/that-name-was-a-kind-of-joke-and-not-a-very-good-one-an-author-leon/) [Peter Higgs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-higgs/) > [When my wife and I got married, she thought of me being an easygoing person, and I warned her I wasn't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-higgs/when-my-wife-and-i-got-married-she-thought-of-me-being-an-easygoing/) [Peter Higgs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-higgs/) > [In 2002, a Scottish journalist, during a dinner meant to be private, absolutely wanted me to react to Stephen Hawking's comments. I said one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-higgs/in-2002-a-scottish-journalist-during-a-dinner-meant-to-be-private/) [Peter Higgs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-higgs/) > [Nobody else took what I was doing seriously, so nobody would want to work with me. I was thought to be a bit eccentric…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-higgs/nobody-else-took-what-i-was-doing-seriously-so-nobody-would-want-to/) [Peter Higgs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-higgs/) > [Between 1972 and 1976, I really didn't do much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-higgs/between-1972-and-1976-i-really-didn-t-do-much/) [Peter Higgs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-higgs/) > [It shouldn't be a Higgs field. If it's anybody's, it should be Goldstone field, I think. When Nambu wrote his short paper in 1960,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-higgs/it-shouldn-t-be-a-higgs-field-if-it-s-anybody-s-it-should-be/) [Peter Higgs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-higgs/) > [My first visit to the Large Hadron Collider was in April 2008, before it started up, and CERN had some open days. They were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-higgs/my-first-visit-to-the-large-hadron-collider-was-in-april-2008-before/) [Peter Higgs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-higgs/) > [I was an embarrassment to the department when they did research assessment exercises. A message would go round the department: 'Please give a list…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-higgs/i-was-an-embarrassment-to-the-department-when-they-did-research/) [Peter Higgs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-higgs/) > [I'm rather cynical about the way the honours system is used, frankly. A whole lot of the honours system is used for political purposes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-higgs/i-m-rather-cynical-about-the-way-the-honours-system-is-used-frankly-a/) [Peter Higgs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-higgs/) > [The growth of our understanding of the world through science weakens some of the motivation which makes people believers. But that's not the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-higgs/the-growth-of-our-understanding-of-the-world-through-science-weakens/) [Peter Higgs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-higgs/) > [I'm a great admirer of 'The Simpsons.' It's very surprising because it's backed by a right-wing television company in the U.S., and quite often…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-higgs/i-m-a-great-admirer-of-the-simpsons-it-s-very-surprising-because-it-s/) [Peter Higgs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-higgs/) [Explore all 38 Peter Higgs quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-higgs/) ## More Europe quotes > [History has often showed us the strength of the forces that are unleashed by the yearning for freedom. It moved people to overcome their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-merkel/history-has-often-showed-us-the-strength-of-the-forces-that-are/) [Angela Merkel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-merkel/) > [Few political debates have been as divisive as the European one. I fought as hard as I could on the Remain side, but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/damian-green/few-political-debates-have-been-as-divisive-as-the-european-one-i/) [Damian Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/damian-green/) > [Bayern is always a team that can win the Champions League title in Europe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lothar-matthaus/bayern-is-always-a-team-that-can-win-the-champions-league-title-in/) [Lothar Matthaus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lothar-matthaus/) > [Perhaps our own opposition to even the level of European integration we have now, let alone any more, is well known.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-farage/perhaps-our-own-opposition-to-even-the-level-of-european-integration/) [Nigel Farage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-farage/) > [Liberalism is the philosophy for our time, because it does not try to conserve every tradition of the past, because it does not apply…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-trudeau/liberalism-is-the-philosophy-for-our-time-because-it-does-not-try-to/) [Pierre Trudeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-trudeau/) > [Conservatism is not about leaving people behind. Conservatism is about empowering people to catch up, to give them the tools at their disposable that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-rubio/conservatism-is-not-about-leaving-people-behind-conservatism-is-about/) [Marco Rubio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-rubio/) > [“Conservatism aims to maintain in working order the loyalties of the community to perceived truths and also to those truths which in their judgment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-f-buckley-jr-2/conservatism-aims-to-maintain-in-working-order-the-loyalties-of-the/) [William F. Buckley Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-f-buckley-jr-2/) > [I'm from Europe, England, and I actually lived in Italy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adewale-akinnuoye-agbaje/i-m-from-europe-england-and-i-actually-lived-in-italy/) [Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adewale-akinnuoye-agbaje/) > [Europe is creating the flight of refugees that's tearing it apart politically, and leading rightwing nationalist parties to gain power to withdraw from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-hudson/europe-is-creating-the-flight-of-refugees-that-s-tearing-it-apart/) [Michael Hudson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-hudson/) > [We witness anti-Semitic attacks in the heart of Europe. We hear anti-Semitic slanders in European media. We feel anti-Semitic hatred in the continent that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayelet-shaked/we-witness-anti-semitic-attacks-in-the-heart-of-europe-we-hear-anti/) [Ayelet Shaked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayelet-shaked/) > [Conservatives are people who look at a tree and feel instinctively that it is more beautiful than anything they can name. But when it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-mailer/conservatives-are-people-who-look-at-a-tree-and-feel-instinctively/) [Norman Mailer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-mailer/) > [With the Truman book, I wrote the entire account of his experiences in World War I before going over to Europe to follow his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mccullough/with-the-truman-book-i-wrote-the-entire-account-of-his-experiences-in/) [David McCullough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mccullough/) > [A man accustomed to American food and American domestic cookery would not starve to death suddenly in Europe, but I think he would gradually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/a-man-accustomed-to-american-food-and-american-domestic-cookery-would/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [Yes, across Europe, this wall will fall. For it cannot withstand faith; it cannot withstand truth. 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