Brexit explained: What is the problem with the Irish border?

Ireland in the EU Joining the European Community However, Europe wasn’t so sure. Ireland’s agricultural based economy was choked by its dependence on the UK market, and the country suffered from poverty, mass unemployment and emigration. The founding six EEC countries expressed doubts about our economic capacity and our neutrality. Backstop: Why is the Irish border blocking Brexit? Media playback is unsupported on your device Prime Minister Boris Johnson insists "there is a way" to avoid checks along the Irish border after Brexit. But why has the Irish border remained a major sticking point in the Brexit negotiations? What's the problem? If Brexit happens, the 310-mile Irish border will represent the only land border between the UK and the EU. As well as no longer being in the EU, Northern Ireland is likely to end up with different rules and standards to its neighbour, the Republic of Ireland.

What the EU does for its citizens Since 1957, the European Union has benefited its citizens by working for peace and prosperity. It helps protect our basic political, social and economic rights. Although we may take them for granted, these benefits improve our daily lives. No confidence vote in Theresa May: Rules for a challenge Theresa May is fighting to stay on as prime minister after a no confidence vote among Conservative MPs was triggered. How does the vote work and what could happen next? As leader of the Conservative Party, Theresa May depends on the continued support of her MPs. That has been formally called into question after some of them wrote letters saying they had no confidence in her. Under the party's rules, at least 15% of Tory MPs must write such a letter to make a leadership challenge possible.

The Funds – Community Living for Europe: Structural Funds Watch €351.8 billion of the European Union’s budget is allocated to Cohesion Policy 2014-2020 that is to be the principle investment tool for delivering the Europe 2020 strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth. Cohesion Policy is delivered through three funds: The European Regional Development Fund (ERDF)The European Social Fund (ESF)The Cohesion Fund (focusing on transport and environment, the Cohesion Fund applies to EU Member States which have a GDP lower than 90 % of the EU-27 average–Croatia not taken into account) These three funds together with the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) and the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF) make up the European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF).

Over €1.2 billion in EU Cohesion Funding proposed for Ireland for the period 2021-2027 – greater focus in future spending on innovation and research and development Speaking after the seminar, Ms Andriana Sukova, Deputy Director General at the Commission's Directorate General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, said: "We discussed the current implementation of the European Social Fund which, since 2014, in Ireland has already supported 200,000 unemployed people to get improved capacities, competences and skills. We have also supported 48,000 disabled people and 19,000 single parents. We believe this is making a major change in the lives of citizens in Ireland. " Ms Lena Andersson Pench, Director, European Commission Directorate General for Regional and Urban Policy, told attendees that there would be a greater focus in future funding on developing the research and innovation capacities of Irish-owned SMEs as well as on developing a skilled labour pool –a high share of the Irish workforce have low digital skills – and on increasing the share of women in the workforce.

Sam Gyimah: second Brexit referendum best option for both sides Sam Gyimah, the universities minister who resigned in protest at the prime minister’s Brexit plan and pledged to vote against it, has said a second referendum could be the most sensible path for both leave and remain supporters, and dismissed Theresa May’s agreement with Brussels as a “deal in name only”. The Conservative MP, who on Friday became the seventh minister to quit Theresa May’s government over Brexit, called for a vote to gauge the public’s mood if May loses the meaningful vote in parliament on 11 December. He said the deal May had brokered with the European Union would “cripple our interests for decades to come” and a second referendum could avert “chaos”.

Why did older voters choose Brexit? It's a matter of identity Just a few days before the EU referendum – on June 19 and 20 – we carried out an internet survey of the electorate in Britain and asked more than 2,100 people how they were planning to vote. Some 49% of respondents planned to vote to stay in the EU, with 51% to leave (the result was 49% remain and 52% leave among likely voters). Given that 48% opted to remain and 52% to leave in the actual referendum vote, the survey provided a fairly accurate picture of what happened. One of the biggest questions since the vote has been why older people were more inclined to vote to leave than younger generations.

Londonderry and its region This image was taken by the Sentinel 2A satellite on June 28, 2019. It is a natural color image with native resolution at 10m. Contains information © COPERNICUS SENTINEL 2019, all rights reserved. The city of Londonderry and its region: divided and organised by the Irish border in mutations A city located in a natural shelter on the extremity of Lough Foyle As the picture shows, Londonderry is situated on the extremity of a vast bay called Lough Foyle.