Miles, Pints and Pounds are here to stay

12.38.00pm BST (GMT +0100) Wed 12th Sep 2007

Colin Ross at the European Parliament

Gunter Verheugen, the EU's industry commissioner, has announced that the UK can continue to use imperial measurements. Since 1995, goods sold in Europe have had to display metric weights and measurements, but imperial measures were allowed to continue in the UK until 2009. The announcement means that imperial measurements will now be allowed beyond 2009.

The metric saga pre-dates the EU, beginning when the government set up the UK metrication board in 1969, four years before joining the common market. The request to look into metrication had come from industry in the mid-'60s.