Flexibility and the Future of the European Union. A Federal Trust Working Group Report on flebible integration in the European Union

This report considers the question of a ‘flexible’ European Union from a number of differing perspectives, including conceptual, historical, national and regional approaches. The report’s conclusion is that the European Union is becoming and will become a more differentiated organisation than its original founders hoped or expected. A ‘ core Europe’ based on France and Germany is however not a realistic possibility for the foreseeable future. Depending on the policy area concerned differing models and degrees of differentiation within the Union may apply instead. The study concludes that the as yet unanswered question for the future of ‘flexible integration’ in the European Union is that of the governance of the Eurozone. Will those countries in the Eurozone be willing to pool further sovereignty to make the Eurozone more politically attractive and economically efficient?