The mile will go on for ever after the European Parliament voted yesterday to allow Britain to keep its traditional measurements, after years of trying to impose the metric system.

The decision will also safeguard the pint and ounce, despite a behind-the-scenes attempt led by France and Germany to set a deadline for their replacement, The Times understands.

In a victory for Britain’s “metric martyrs” – traders who were prepared to go to court to keep traditional weights and measures – it means that the phase-out of the imperial system, due next year, will be put off indefinitely. It will allow traders to sell items by the pound and ounce provided that they also display the metric equivalent.

The EU climbdown was first indicated last year by the European Commissioner for Enterprise and Industry, Günter Verheugen, who called the metric movement “a pointless battle” against British culture. But The Times has learnt that in detailed discussions at ambassadorial level this year, Germany, France, Estonia and Austria tried to keep a timetable for imperial measures to be scrapped.

British campaigners argued that the continual assault on traditional ways of doing things was bad for business and that imperial measures made it easier for British exporters to trade with the US market. In the end the four countries backed down because they could not raise enough support against the argument among other EU member states, leading to the deal agreed yesterday by MEPs.

The Government and the Conservatives were both keen to claim the credit for the decision in Strasbourg. John Denham, the Innovation, Universities and Skills Secretary, who is responsible for national weights and measures, said: “People in Britain like their pint and their mile. They should be able to use the measures they are most familiar with. We made strong arguments for the right to carry on using pints and miles and maintaining dual metric and imperial labelling.”

David Willetts, the Shadow Innovation, Universities and Skills Secretary, said: “The pint, the mile and pounds and ounces are part of our country’s rich traditions and it is great that they have been protected from an absurd attempt by the EU to get rid of them.”

Since 1995, goods sold in Europe have had to display metric weights and measurements. But to appease a public outcry in the UK, imperial indications were also allowed, although the concession was to end next year.

The most prominent of the metric martyrs, Steve Thoburn, was convicted in 2001 of selling bananas only by the pound. His offence was that he failed to provide customers with the metric equivalent, as required under EU law. He died in 2004.

Milestones

1215 Reign of King John. An agreement to have a national standard of weights and measures incorporated into Magna Carta

1352 Reign of Edward III. A statute sets the stone as 14lb

1532 Reign of Henry VIII. An Act says butchers should sell meat by haver du pois weight – avoirdupois – in which the pound is split into 16 ounces

1824 Reign of George IV. The Weights and Measures Act established the imperial system of weights and measures

1969 Reign of Elizabeth II. Metrication Board set up to look at introducing the metric system into the UK

1972 The European Communities Act hands responsibility for weights and measures legislation to Brussels

1995 Goods sold in Europe must be shown in metric, but imperial measurements are also allowed after public demand

2001 Steve Thoborn convicted of selling bananas by the pound. Under EU law he was required to give his customers the metric equivalent

2008 EU allows Britain to use the imperial system alongside metric measurements

Source: Times archives

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