BORIS GIVES US AN INCH
PM to bring back imperial measures
BORIS Johnson will revive the old imperial weights and measures system to mark the Platinum Jubilee.
The Prime Minister is set to announce shopkeepers will once again be able to price items by weight in pounds and ounces instead of metric kilos and grams.
Government insiders told the Sunday Mirror an announcement on “imperial measures” will be made on Friday to coincide with The Queen’s Jubilee celebrations.
Tories hope that in the wake of the Partygate scandal, it will shore up support among Brexiteer voters in seats they are in danger of losing.
But the imperial move is also thought to be largely symbolic, to address gripes about EU interference in English life.
Since 2000, traders have been legally required to use metric units when selling fresh produce. It is still legal to display weights in pounds and ounces, but these must be displayed alongside the price per gram or kilogram.
As part of Mr Johnson’s new plan – which follows a study led by Brexit Opportunities Minister Jacob Rees-Mogg – traders will be free to choose whether they use metric or imperial units.
Mr Johnson vowed to bring back imperial units during his 2019 election campaign and said measuring in pounds and ounces was an “ancient liberty”.
The late grocer Steven Thoburn, who was prosecuted in 2001 for selling goods on his Sunderland market stall in pounds and ounces, was hailed a “metric martyr” for waging a legal battle against the ruling. Mr Thoburn, who died in 2004 at the age of 39, failed to get the conviction overturned.
But fellow campaigner Neil Herron said the PM’s imperial plan could pave the way for a posthumous “pardon” for his friend. Calling it “a big moment”, he added: “It would go down really well amongst the broad British public.”
Britain uses a mix of imperial units, with speed limits in miles per hour rather than kilometres, and beer bought in pints rather than litres.
But Labour says the PM should focus on other more pressing issues. Shadow Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said: “The Government should get on with tackling the cost of living.”
This will go down really well amongst the British public
NEIL HERRON METRIC MARTYR CAMPAIGNER