Freedom of movement for workers in the European Union the European Coal and Steel Community established a right to free movement for workers in these industries and the Treaty of Rome (1957) provided a right for the free movement of workers within the European Economic Community. The Directive 2004/38/EC on the right to move and reside freely assembles the different aspects of the right of movement in one document, replacing "inter alia" the directive 1968/360/EEC. It also clarifies procedural issues, and it strengthens the rights of family members of European citizens using the freedom of movement. According to the official site of the European Parliament, the explanation of the
2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum or Euratom) and European Economic Community (EEC) in 1957. The EEC, the more ambitious of the three, came to be known as the "Common Market". The UK first applied to join them in 1961, but this was vetoed by France. A later application was successful, and the UK joined in 1973; two years later, the first ever national referendum on continuing membership resulted in 67.2% approval. Political integration gained greater focus when the Maastricht Treaty established the European Union (EU) in 1993, which incorporated (and after the Treaty of Lisbon, succeeded) the European Communities. Prior to the 2010 general election,