TO mark the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, Boris Johnson is planning to announce the revival of imperial measurements.
According to the Mirror, the Prime Minister is expected to allow shops across the UK to sell goods in pounds and ounces.
A Government source for the Mirror has said that ministers will make the announcement on Friday to coincide with the Queen’s jubilee.
No 10 reportedly hopes that the news will bolster support among pro-Brexit voters in key constituencies that the Tories are under threat of losing.
READ MORE: Scotland is 'bankrolling' 90 per cent of Rishi Sunak’s £5bn windfall tax
The move comes as Johnson is under increasing pressure to sway public opinion in the aftermath of the Sue Gray report as more Tory MPs hand in letters of no confidence to the 1922 Committee.
Since the year 2000, traders in the UK have been legally obliged to use the metric system for the sale by weight or measure of fresh produce. However, it has still been legal to price goods in pounds and ounces as long as the price in grams and kilograms is displayed alongside.
It is not expected that metric units will be altogether scrapped but that traders will be allowed to choose which system to use following a Government study proposal led by Brexit Opportunities Minister Jacob Rees-Mogg.
Commenting on the news, Nicola Sturgeon Tweeted: "To paraphrase - ‘those whom the gods seek to destroy they first make utterly ridiculous’"
To paraphrase - ‘those whom the gods seek to destroy they first make utterly ridiculous’ https://t.co/GJNjKjNFPI
— Nicola Sturgeon (@NicolaSturgeon) May 28, 2022
Scottish Green Ross Greer wrote on Twitter: "A pantomime kingdom ruled by upper class tosspots still inconsolable that the empire is over"
A pantomime kingdom ruled by upper class tosspots still inconsolable that the empire is over
— Ross Greer (@Ross_Greer) May 28, 2022
https://t.co/9KdBQDlfj1
Labour's Shadow Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said: “Small businesses can measure the difference a Labour government would make in pounds and pence with our plan to cut taxes for pubs, cafes, and shops.
“The Government should get on with tackling the cost of living and cutting costs for businesses. Labour backs British firms and will make Brexit work for them and consumers.”
A Cabinet source to the Mirror said: “As the British people have been happy to use both imperial and metric measurements in their daily life it is good for the Government to reflect that now we are free to change our regulations accordingly.”
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