FREE now and never miss the top politics stories again. SUBSCRIBE Invalid email Sign up fornow and never miss the top politics stories again. We will use your email address only for sending you newsletters. Please see our Privacy Notice for details of your data protection rights.

The Prime Minister laid out the latest part of his vision for a post-Brexit UK just a week before Britons cast their votes in an election which is expected to see him win back the Tory majority lost by Theresa May. As well as charging ahead in the polls, Mr Johnson was called the winner of last night’s TV debate with Jeremy Corbyn, as 52 percent of voters in a snap YouGov poll for Sky News said he had performed the strongest. And the latest of his election pledges - to bring back the imperial measurement system - could win him extra votes, particularly from the older generation.

Mr Johnson told the Daily Mail: “We will bring back that ancient liberty. I see no reason why people should be prosecuted.” He added: “I think the reality is a lot of people are now educated in the metric system, we have to recognise that. “But people… I understand what a pound of apples is. I also understand what a kilo of apples is.”

Boris Johnson has said he will bring back trading in pounds and ounces after Brexit

Mr Johnson said the UK could revert back to the old system of trading after Brexit

British manufacturers were free to sell goods labelled in the imperial or metric systems in the past. But that all changed in January 2000 when the EU made it illegal to sell products in non-metric weights and measurements. Critics slammed the “ridiculousness” of the new system and traders across the UK voiced their opposition. READ MORE: Schools go imperial in curriculum overhaul

Boris Johnson has vowed to deliver Brexit by January 31

In the years that followed a series of “metric martyrs” have found themselves being hauled to court for refusing to comply with the rules. Their only crime was to sell foods and other goods not labelled according to Brussels’ laws. The original Metric Martyrs were a group of traders who had campaigned for a relaxation of the rules. DON'T MISS

Strawberries sold by the pound in EU snub [INSIGHT]

Stallholder fights metric meddlers [INTERVIEW]

U-turn on metric martyr prosecution [ANALYSIS]

The Prime Minister is on track to win a majority next week

Andrea Leadsom previously touted the idea of reverting back to the old system of measurements

When labelling goods, manufacturers have to display their weight in metric measurements - kilograms, grams, litre, millilitres. Under the current system only certain foods and products can be sold using imperial measures. These include beer, cider, milk, and precious metals.

Boris Johnson is expected to come out of the election with a Parliamentary majority

The EU does not ban the use of imperial measurements on products, but states that if they are used they must not “stand out more than the metric measurement”. In 2017 business secretary Andrea Leadsom, who at the time was minister for environment, food and rural affairs, spoke about the idea of reverting back to the old rules. Ms Leadsom said: “Once we have left the EU, we will get the opportunity to look at how we can change rules that will be better for the United Kingdom and whether that’s on weights and measures or issues like teaspoons, those are things for the future.”

The Prime Minister has built his election campaign on his drive to deliver Brexit

Trending