What do the following stories have in common?

1. France has started to block trains from Italy to intercept illegal migrants from North Africa.

2. A Eurosceptic party has made big gains in the Finnish general election.

3. Political squabbling in Portugal is raising doubt about the country’s ability to negotiate a bail-out.

4. There are growing demands in Greece for the country to default on its debts.

Answer: These are all symptoms of the same problem. The political understandings that underpin the EU are beginning to unravel. Read more