At a conference in London recently (remember those?), someone referred to Northern Ireland as \u2018the problem child\u2019 who nobody wants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Brexit is often described in terms of a divorce between the UK and the EU, and a \u2018problem child\u2019 adds a certain edge to the analogy. If the process of separation between the UK and the EU is fraught with tension, it cannot be anything other than unnerving for a region that remains legally, politically, socially, culturally and economically tied to both.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Northern Ireland isn\u2019t doing this to be awkward \u2013 it simply can\u2019t help being so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Northern Ireland was a priority concern in the withdrawal negotiations because it is a microcosm of what integration means. This is a fancy way of saying that Northern Ireland is made out of Britain and<\/em> Ireland; its ugliness and its \u2018quare\u2019 beauty, its defiantly complicated nature and infuriating character come from being an unwanted child of the two.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And \u2013 try as some might to erase or ignore its parentage \u2013 both are written into its DNA. The 1998 Good Friday Agreement\u2019s recognition of those born in Northern Ireland as \u2018British, Irish or both\u2019 illustrates that it is, fundamentally, an amalgam.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To continue reading, please click here.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Article originally appeared on The UK in a Changing Europe<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\u00a0featured\u00a0image<\/a><\/em>\u00a0has been used courtesy of a\u00a0<\/em>Creative Commons license.<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Northern Ireland’s complex parentage raises problems for Brexit. Dr Katy Hayward argues that both the UK and the EU are making the mistake of viewing Northern Ireland as a potential risk rather than a joint responsibility.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2478,"featured_media":6426,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":true,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[41],"tags":[42,98,106],"class_list":["post-6425","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-europe","tag-brexit","tag-eu","tag-northern-ireland"],"mb":[],"acf":{"authors":{"simple_value_formatted":"