A member of Scotland's parliament has been lobbying the EBU for permission to enter the Eurovision Song Contest. esctoday.com has been investigating the possibilities of this happening. The story is one of the main headlines in today in the leading Scottish media.

After intense lobbying from Alyn Smith, a Scottish National Party member of the European Parliament, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), said there was nothing to prevent Scotland from entering on its own merit. This means that broadcasters BBC Scotland, Scottish TV and Border Television, as members of the EBU, could submit an entry in future years. A spokeswoman for STV said: "There are no plans at the moment but we would not rule anything out".

The ruling has come too late to allow entry into this years contest. However Scottish secretary Linda Fabiani said: "If this is something one of the broadcasters wanted to pursue, then we would support it. There is a huge amount of talent in Scotland and we would be happy for it to be showcased." Nationalist Euro MP Alyn Smith said: "Having looked into this, I know the door is open for us. Other small countries have done it and I will be happy to help any of the broadcasting companies through the process. There is already a precedent because we have a Scottish national football team in UEFA."

Under the rules, any regions who are members of the European Broadcasting Union can apply for an entry. This would allow for a possible entry from Wales and Northern Ireland, as Welsh broadcasters S4C and BBC Wales are EBU members, as is Ulster TV.

esctoday.com continues to investigate this story.