The lack of awareness in the UK about the European Union is no more marked than elsewhere.

A colleague, who is Finnish, recently confided that the Brussels Town Hall, on the receipt of her application for a residence permit, demanded to know whether Finland was in the EU.

Even then, a mountain of paper and numerous tedious formalities were still required for one of principle rights of the EU, the freedom to reside and work anywhere in the Union, to be implemented.

Freedom of movement has been much in the news in Brussels during the past few weeks. There are now 13 countries seeking to become members: Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Romania, the Slovak Republic, Slovenia and Turkey.

A potential growth in the EU's geographical mass by over a third and the incorporation of 105 million new citizens is driving a radical re-think of the way in the EU operates.

The recently-signed Nice Treaty included some important reforms to the allocation of European Commissioners and the distribution of seats in the European Parliament.

There is growing friction between the political need to initiate the incorporation of new member states, becoming ever more urgent, and the potential economic and social consequences of creating an EU where disparities in wealth and opportunity are simply unmanageable.

All things being equal, full entry should bring full rights and obligations. However, there is a recognition that a fairly lengthy transitional period will be required before citizens of the new member states can move freely to take up employment outside their home countries.

The key issue is whether the determination of a number of existing member states to extend this period as long as possible will unsettle, if not undermine, the whole enlargement process.

In April, the Commission urged existing member states to insist on no more than a seven-year period of restrictions.

This appears not to go far enough to meet the concerns of Germany, experiencing the effects of enlargement to the East, and Spain and Portugal, anxious over possible repercussions on regional development grants.

There are predictions four countries will effectively be running the EU show in a decade or so.

An interesting variations has the four countries as France, Germany, Italy and Poland. The rationale for the latter is Poland is a great "EU-enthusiast", unlike a number of existing members.

Martin Manuzi is senior executive in the European Office of the Institute of Chartered Accountants. business@argus-btn.co.uk