If the impression given by British newspapers is true, the only reason which the majority of the inhabitants of the United Kingdom see for belonging to the European Union is the negative one of not being faced with the problem of the Common External Tariff when trying to sell their goods on the continent. It is the existence of such a tariff which distinguishes a customs union from a free trade area, and the preference of the British for the latter was made very clear by the attempt in 1960 to establish the European Free Trade Area (EFTA) as a rival and alternative to the European Economic Community (EEC).