Brussels, 07/07/2011 (Agence Europe) - The right to move and reside freely in the European Union is the most important right in the eyes of citizens, it is revealed in a special Eurobarometer survey, commissioned by the European Ombudsman and the European Parliament. According to a press release by the Ombudsman, 48% of European citizens ranked this as the most important right, followed by the right to good administration by the EU institutions on 33%. Ombudsman Nikiforos Diamandouros says that “citizens' right to move and reside freely in the EU is clearly one of the main achievements of European integration”. All this comes at precisely the time as a debate is getting under way on the future of the Schengen area of free movement and possible returns to internal border controls. “The European Network of Ombudsmen has a key role to play in ensuring that citizens can exercise this right in practice”, Diamandouros goes on to say. The survey (carried out on a sample of 27,000 people in February and March) also reveals that 85% of respondents say they still lack sufficient information about the Charter of Fundamental Rights, and a further 13% have never even heard of it. (S.P./transl.rt)