Scottish independence: border controls warning Scotland's border controls would be a "complete nightmare" after independence, with the prospect of minor roads and farm tracks being patrolled, Scottish Secretary Michael Moore has claimed. He warned that the SNP's plans for a more immigration-friendly approach than the rest of the UK would inevitably mean checks along the border between the two countries. But the claims were branded "silly scare stories" by the SNP, who insisted there will be no passport checks between Scotland and England in the event of a Yes vote in next year's referendum. Mr Moore told business leaders yesterday that the greater immigration levels which Scotland wants compares with a stricter approach south of the border. The UK and Ireland are not part of the Schengen "open borders" arrangement which exists across Europe - although Scotland may have to join this as a new EU state after independence. But a common travel area exists between both Northern Ireland and the Republic. "In terms of immigration policy that's practical because we work hard together and in policy terms are very much aligned," Mr Moore said. If Scotland attempts to negotiate its way out of Schengen, that would be a "big ask" according to Mr Moore. But he added: "You just can't have a vastly divergent immigration policy without a strong border and I represent more of the land border between Scotland and England than anybody else in parliament - other than my English colleagues." That would be a complete nightmare. Schengen exemption The SNP Government is adamant that Scotland would remain in the EU after independence, but wants to negotiate an exemption from Schengen in order to maintain a free travel area with the UK. But Mr Moore said: "You've got to then spell out what you mean by immigration policy, because we're also told that they (the SNP) want a very different immigration policy to the rest of the United Kingdom. In other parts of the world where you've got those kind of arrangements, you've got to work very closely together. You cannot reconcile a very different policy on the one hand with no border controls on the other. They've simply not made that case and not persuaded people how they would get round that problem. If you go to my constituency, its not just the main roads like the A68, the A697 and the A1 that you would have to be policing, It's all the farm tracks that go across from Yetholm into Northumberland. We don't want to turn that into some policed border - the Scottish Government say they don't either, but they can't answer how they would both keep out of Schengen, have a different immigration policy and not have some form of border control. The SNP insists that Scotland has skills gaps which are not being met by the current UK immigration policy. It has pledged to ditch the cap on the number of skilled migrants which is currently enforced by the Coalition Government at Westminster. This is likely to prompt a London Government, which is keen to restrict immigration, to enforce border controls to prevent an unchecked surge from Scotland into the rest of the UK. But Nationalist MSP Annabelle Ewing branded the claims "more nonsense from Project Fear." She added: "Not only does the UK share a Common Travel Area with the Republic Ireland, which sets its own immigration policy, but the UK is actually deepening the Common Travel Area with Ireland by even developing common visas. While Mr Moore is peddling silly scares at Scotland, his own government is pursuing the exact opposite policy towards Ireland - no wonder people are beginning to laugh at Project Fear. Scotland will be in the Common Travel Area involving the UK, Ireland, the Channel Isles and Isle of Man - not the Schengen area - and why on earth would any Westminster government want to inconvenience its own citizens by having it any other way? The only vote in the referendum for more powers is Yes - a No vote is for no more powers, and the continuation of governments from Westminster that Scotland didn't vote for. Scottish independence: UK passport loss indication