Boris Johnson is reportedly announcing the return of imperial measures to mark the queen’s platinum jubilee, in an apparent attempt to gain the support of Brexit voters on the battlefield seats that the Conservatives are in danger of to lose.
Britain currently uses a combination of imperial and metric measures, with speed limits in miles per hour and milk and beer bought in pints.
The Prime Minister is expected to come under pressure following new harmful revelations about the Partygate scandal, announcing next week that British stores will be able to sell products in pounds and ounces to coincide with the monarch’s 70th anniversary celebrations on the throne .
A Cabinet source told the Mirror: “As the British people have been happy to use imperial and metric measures in their daily lives, it is good for the government to reflect that we are now free to change our regulations accordingly.”
Since 1995, goods sold in Europe have had to show weights and metric measurements. And since 2000, when the European Union Weights and Measures Directive came into force, traders have been legally required to use metric units for the sale by weight or measurement of fresh produce, which become a recurring problem for Eurosceptics about Brussels’ alleged interference in British life. .
While it is still legal to set the price of goods in pounds and ounces, these should be displayed along with the price in grams and kilograms.
Steven Thoburn, a Sunderland greengrocer, fought a three-year legal battle after being prosecuted for selling in pounds and ounces at his market stall in 2001. The dispute, which was taken to the House of Lords, resulted from the sale of a bunch of bananas worth 34p.
During the 2019 general election campaign, Johnson promised to return imperial units to stores.
He claimed that measuring in pounds and ounces was an “old freedom” as he heralded a “new era of generosity and tolerance” towards traditional measures.
Only three other countries, the United States, Myanmar and Liberia, use the imperial system on a daily basis.