Western Morning News (Saturday)
Imperial measures set to be legal again
20 years after ‘metric martyrs’– law on pounds and ounces reviewed
ALMOST 20 years after a fishmonger and a greengrocer in the Westcountry were prosecuted for selling goods in pounds and ounces, the Government is planning to bring back imperial measures.
Brexit minister Lord Frost this week set out plans to ditch a number of rules imposed by Brussels now that Britain is outside the EU. And yesterday Environment Secretary George Eustice confirmed that traders could again be permitted to sell goods in pounds and ounces.
The move comes two decades after fishmonger John Dove and greengrocer Julian Harman, both of Camelford in Cornwall, were ordered to pay court costs for selling mackerel and Brussels sprouts by the pound instead of the kilo.
They were part of a group of five traders nicknamed the ‘metric martyrs’ who were taken to court for defying the law on metric measurements.
Lord Frost said Government plans include permitting the voluntary printing of the crown stamp on pint glasses and reviewing the EU ban on markings and sales in pounds and ounces. He said legislation would follow “in due course”.
Critics warned, however, that a partial return to imperial measurements could cause confusion – and pointed out schools had been teaching in metric since the 1970s.
THE daughter of a man dubbed “Britain’s Metric Martyr” for selling bananas by the pound has welcomed Boris Johnson’s promised review of weights and measures, which could see the reintroduction of imperial measurements.
Georgia Thoburn’s father Steven was convicted in 2001 for breaching an EU directive banning the use of pounds and ounces in favour of the metric measurement system. Also in court that day were two Cornwall-based traders who also defied the law for the right to continue selling their goods in imperial measures.
Fishmonger John Dove, of Camelford, was ordered to pay court costs for selling mackerel at £1.50 a pound, while Julian Harman, also of Camelford, was ordered to pay costs for selling Brussels sprouts at 39p a pound.
Mr Thoburn, a greengrocer from Sunderland, died aged just 39 in 2004, days after learning that his appeal to the European Court of Human Rights had been rejected. In court in 2001 his imperial scales were confiscated and he was given a six-month conditional jail term, sparking widespread public support and earning him the moniker of ‘Metric Martyr’.
Now under plans announced this week, it could again be legal for market stalls and shops to sell goods using only Britain’s traditional weighing system.
Defra Secretary George Eustice, a strong supporter of Brexit, told Times Radio yesterday that he thought the way the metric martyrs had been treated was “completely disproportionate.”
The MP for Camborne and Redruth said it might not be a priority for people to return to using pounds and ounces but he asked: “Should they want to, should we abolish it, is the point I would make? We are not going to be in the business of abolishing kilgrams or grams but I think it should be for individual businesses and premises to decide what measurements they want to use.”
Pubs will also be allowed to sell pints in glasses printed with the crown stamp that was previously prohibited by EU directives.
Now Georgia, 24, and fellow campaigners believe the announcement is another step closer to the posthumous Royal Pardon they have long-called for.
Georgia, a student nurse, said: “This latest announcement by the Government is great news and completely vindicates my Dad and the Metric Martyrs’ campaign’s stand after all these years.
“My dad was just an ordinary market trader who became an extraordinary, reluctant hero.
“My mam was his rock and supported him all the way despite the initial concerns.
“I have picked up the mantle and take forward the call for the Pardon with Neil to finally clear my Dad’s name.
“This was also something my Mam was passionate about and keen to take forward but she tragically passed away in 2016 aged only 43.
“Looking back over the press and media coverage at the time is now striking home how important the stand my Dad made was and how many people from all walks of life backed the campaign.”
Fellow traders John Dove, Julian Harman and Colin Hunt are the only others to be convicted under the Metrication Regulations.
Neil Herron, a businessman who has led the campaign to obtain a pardon for Mr Thoburn, said: “It is fantastic news and completely vindicates the Metric Martyrs.
“I would think a Royal Pardon is a few steps closer now.
“We are quite hopeful the new Lord Chancellor Dominic Raab will consider this very seriously now given the fact he was one of our greatest supporters.”
Neil, a fishmonger, was one of the first supporters of Mr Thoburn when he was arrested in 2001 for selling bananas by the pound.
He has long called for the return to imperial measurements to be used in the UK, a campaign many Brexit campaigners latched on to.
He added: “It has taken 20 years, but it is very welcome news. It was quite a shock. The government gave us a good indication they were considering this as it is something people were passionate about, but we didn’t think it would come this soon.”
It should be for individual businesses to decide what measurements to use GEORGE EUSTICE