In a quiet announcement over the Christmas period, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s government revealed it is dropping plans to bring back imperial measurements, breaking a key Brexit promise made by former PM Boris Johnson.
As per GB News, the return to using imperial units like pounds and ounces was a symbolic fight for hardline Brexiteers who wanted to undo the EU’s requirement to use the metric system. Johnson had pledged that leaving the EU would allow Britain to restore the “ancient liberty” of shops displaying and selling fresh produce in imperial measurements.
Last year, coinciding with the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, Johnson launched a consultation on reintroducing imperial units as the first step towards fully changing Britain’s measurement laws. “As the Queen celebrates her 70th year on the throne, people will be raising a glass to toast her reign. Now, thanks to Brexit, they can buy it in pounds and ounces too,” Johnson declared.
However, Sunak’s government concluded there was little public appetite for the change after a survey of over 100,000 consumers found 98.7% opposed reversing from the metric system.
In the statement, Business Minister Kevin Hollinrake said the overwhelming response was that bringing back imperial units would cause “consumer confusion, increased costs for businesses and barriers to international trade.” He argued the decision gives “innovation, freedom and choice” to producers and consumers.
Jacob Rees-Mogg, a staunch Brexiteer, attacked the move as “petty, spiteful and doctrinaire” while former Conservative leader Iain Duncan Smith said it made “no sense.”
The decision deals a blow to Brexit hardliners who harbored nostalgic dreams of returning to traditional British weights and measures. They believed ditching EU laws would allow Britain to turn back the clock on metrication imposed by Brussels bureaucrats.
But for most Britons under 50 who grew up with the metric system, concepts like ounces, gallons and Fahrenheit degrees are totally foreign. With the UK no longer isolated from global trade, clinging to imperial measurements always posed more costs than benefits.
More broadly, Sunak’s scrapping of the imperial measurements legislation represents his attempt to sideline the most hardcore Brexiteers in his party.
Sunak, a soft Brexit supporter, understands the economic damage from a hard split from the EU. He wants to improve ties with Britain’s largest trading partner instead of stoking divisive fights over issues like units of measurement.
His decision shows Sunak puts pragmatism over ideology when it comes to Brexit. While Brexiteers push for more separation from Brussels, the PM seems focused on making Brexit work as smoothly as possible.
The only exception in the measurement policy is for wine bottles sold in shops, which will now allow new sizes like 500ml and 200ml containers. Producers can also sell still and sparkling wines in pint bottles – a nod to Winston Churchill’s preferred measure.
However, with imperial units broadly unpopular in Britain, it’s questionable whether there’s actual consumer demand driving this move. The wine industry itself is skeptical about selling pints of wine.
The change may be mostly symbolic – giving Brexiteers a minor concession to save face while Sunak stays firmly aligned to the metric system preferred by the public.
As Sunak gears up for a general election next year, he has to carefully balance the various factions within his Conservative Party when it comes to Brexit policy.
Hardline Brexiteers are demanding more radical breaks from EU regulations and access to the single market. Yet Sunak knows that non-ideological middle ground voters care more about economic stability than rehashing Brexit battles.
By ditching the return to imperial measurements, Sunak continues to reorient Conservative policy for the election and appeal to the political center. But he throws committed Brexiteers under the bus in the process.
Managing these internal party tensions around Brexit will be a delicate balancing act for Sunak going into 2024. And more pragmatic decisions that alienate the Tory right may lie ahead.
