The head of the EU's executive commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, has suggested a dramatic restructuring of the bloc with "core" members and "orbit" nations. These outliers could include the UK and Turkey, he said.
Image: Reuters/C. Hartmann
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European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker suggested a radical re-envisioning of the EU on Thursday. The new plan would see a smaller group of core EU members, and then different levels of belonging for other nations that were not prepared for full membership.
"Do we want to always advance as a group of 28? Or shouldn't it be that those who want to go fast can do so, without affecting the others?" he asked a conference in the Belgian city of Leuven. He suggested that the bloc may function better if not every country was compelled to take part in projects they had no interest in, even in matters of defense.
He suggested instead a "structured design, open to all" in the format of some "core" EU members surrounded by an outer "orbit" of less involved nations. These looser-knit nations could include the UK, for example, or even Turkey, which has been pursuing EU membership for years despite the bloc voicing concerns about Ankara's human rights record.
No hard border for Ireland
At the same time, Juncker made it clear that Europe would fight for Ireland's interests when it came to negotiations for the UK's divorce from the EU, known as Brexit. There have been concerns about the consequences of reintroducing a formal international border between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
"The Irish government will work closely with us during the whole process of the Brexit negotiations. We do not want to have hard borders," Juncker said after meeting with Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny in Brussels.
Kenny also made it clear that Dublin wants Northern Ireland to be able to join the EU immediately should it vote by referendum to join the Republic, as was the case with the former East Germany in the 1990s.
es/se (AFP, dpa)
Brexit regions
A look at some cities in the UK's northeast that had a majority vote to leave the European Union.
Image: Getty Images/D.Kitwood
Great Yarmouth
A view of "The Flamingo" amusement arcade in Great Yarmouth. 72% of people in this town on England's east coast voted to leave the European Union during the referendum in June 2016. The area has the third lowest percentage of university educated residents and among the highest number of working class voters.
Image: Getty Images/J. Taylor
East coast euroskeptic
The five most euroskeptic areas are all on Britain's east coast, including Great Yarmouth in Norfolk. One reason might be a rise in immigration, as well as a general decline in the standard of living, which has led to huge frustrations in these areas in recent years.
Image: Getty Images/J. Taylor
'Don't blame me'
A UKIP sticker in a car's rear window in Great Yarmouth. The seaside resort is situated some 140 miles (200 km) northeast of London.
Image: Getty Images/J. Taylor
Docklands in Hartlepool
The borough of Hartlepool voted to leave the European Union by 69.6%. There was a similar result in much of the Britain's northeast, including in cities such as Sunderland and Stanley.
Image: Getty Images/D. Kitwood
Bleak scenery in Stanley, County Durham
A row of housing in Stanley, County Durham. The former colliery town is one of the cheapest places to buy a house in the UK. Durham voted to leave the European Union by 57.5%. In the whole northeast, Newcastle was the only borough to vote Remain, though by a narrow margin. This was most likely due to its large student population and dependency on EU funding.
Image: Getty Images/D. Kitwood
Sunderland voted to leave the EU by 61.3%
The former Joplings Department Store stands derelict. Plans to convert the building into a designer hotel are currently underway. A report by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation in 2016 named Sunderland one of the “most declining” cities in the UK. It also says that ten of the UK’s top 12 struggling cities are based in the north. No city in the south featured in the top 12, or even 24, of the index.
Image: Getty Images/D. Kitwood
Sunderland’s urban landscape
A mural of local football hero, Raich Carter, embellishes the wall of the Blue Bell Pub in Hendon, his former area in Sunderland. Wearmouth Colliery, which was a major North Sea coal mine, was the largest mine in Sunderland. Also one of the most important mines in northeast England, it was closed at the end of 1993. The former mine is now the site of Sunderland AFC’s Stadium of Light.
