Published online by Cambridge University Press: 18 August 2016
The European Economic Community came into existence on 1 January 1958, following the ratification of the Treaty of Rome by the parliaments of the six member countries, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. The long-term aim of ‘The Six’ in setting up the Community was to achieve a unified economic unit with a common economic policy, and whilst commonly referred to in the United Kingdom as the Common Market it should not be thought of merely as an advanced form of customs union.