EU citizens living in the UK to be banned from voting in referendum

European citizens living in Britain will be barred from voting in the referendum on whether to stay in the EU, it has been announced.

The franchise for referendum, which has been promised by the end of 2017, will be based on that for a general election - meaning Irish, Maltese and Cypriots resident in the UK will get a vote, but other EU citizens will not.

The effective exclusion of most UK-resident EU citizens from the decision has been broadly welcomed but there has been condemnation of the failure to follow Scotland's independence referendum move to allow votes at 16.

Labour said it was a "matter of principle" that those old enough to pay tax, marry and join the armed forces should not be voiceless in such an important national decision and said it would table an amendment to extend the franchise.

Legislation for the referendum will be introduced to Parliament on Thursday, the day after the Queen's Speech.

Also allowed to vote will be members of the House of Lords, and Commonwealth citizens living here and in Gibraltar, as well as UK nationals who have lived abroad for less than 15 years.

Under local government election rules, as many as 1.5m people from EU countries would have been allowed to vote.

A Number 10 source said: "No Brit under the age of 58 has had their say on the UK's membership of the European Union.

"It is time to put this right and to give people the choice - in or out. This is a big decision for our country, one that is about the future of the United Kingdom. That's why we think it's important that it is British, Irish and Commonwealth citizens that are the ones who get to decide."

Meanwhile, Prime Minister David Cameron will be meeting with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker at Chequers today, where he will attempt to make his case for EU reform. Mr Cameron will spend the week visiting various European capitals in an attempt to build support for his agenda.