Juncker will be divisive as EC president

Britain and Germany are expected to clash, at a summit in Ypres, over the presidency of the European Commission (EC) — Ypres is the Belgian town where the two countries battled during the First World War.

There will be no winners this time, either. Germany is likely to secure the job for former Luxembourg Prime Minister, Jean-Claude Juncker, even though British Prime Minister, David Cameron, attempted to block the appointment, because Juncker’s vision of a deeper European Union (EU) is at variance with some members.

Appointing Juncker as head of the EC after European elections in which there were a sizeable number of anti-union candidates amounts to ‘flicking two fingers’ at the electorate. The EC president serves as a de-facto prime minister.

The EU needs leaders capable of rethinking the way the bloc has been governed, to make EU donors, such as Britain, feel good about backing it financially. Juncker as the next president will not resolve the conflict.

Gerry Coughlan

Parkhill West

Dublin 24