The following is an extract from Christopher Booker's column in the Sunday Telegraph (6/5/01):

"Free speech in the balance"

A court case this week in Sutton, Surrey, will give the metrication battle a new twist. Sutton council wants to suspend the licence of Peter Collins, a local market trader, because he cannot afford a set of metric scales and wants to go on selling apples and bananas in pounds and ounces. The defence being offered is totally different from the abstruse constitutional points about European Union legislation at the centre of the Sunderland case. Mr Collins's lawyer, Quentin Richards, will argue that, under the European Convention of Human Rights, his client has the legal right of "commercial free speech", to use the system of weights and measures he and his customers understand.

Although public response since the Sunderland judgment has been so overwhelming that Steve Thoburn is to appeal, his chief supporter and fellow-trader, Neil Herron, is delighted by the new case and says they hope to be able to offer Mr Collins financial support. "This brings the issue right down to earth", he says. "That it is the basic right of traders and customers to carry on honest trade under the system they know and prefer."

The date for the hearing is Thursday, 10th May. It is not a trial but a hearing to set a date for a trial.

Following today's hearing, a three-day trial has been fixed for July 9th, 2001.

The following article appeared in the Sunday Telegraph, July 8th, 2001:


A sense of ounces

ANOTHER market trader will tomorrow be in court under the EU's metrication laws. Sutton borough council in Surrey refuses to renew Peter Collins's market stall licence because he declines to sell fruit and veg in weights that he says his customers do not understand.

Mr Collins's claim is borne out by a new survey commissioned from ICM by Britain's largest advertising agency, Abbot Mead Vickers BBDO. This shows that 70 per cent of the British people, including a majority of 18-to-24-year-olds, can make sense of weights "only in pounds and ounces".

While 51 per cent of the London middle-classes say they are "at home with kilograms", of the Northern working class only 18 per cent say they have "any real understanding of kilos".

Interestingly, while 39 per cent of men claim to be "confident in kilos", when put to the test only two thirds of those got the calculations right; whereas, while only 20 per cent of women say they are at home with kilos, in practice 27 per cent of them come up with the right answers. If those Sutton magistrates really want to know why Mr Collins insists on selling tomatoes in "lbs" they should consult the ICM report.

The following is by Helen William of Press Association News, dated July 9th, 2001:

A grocer seeking a landmark ruling to continue selling his fruit and veg in pounds and ounces today told the court: "I am just trying to survive."

Peter Collins, 51, of Sutton, Surrey, says that Sutton Council is breaching his commercial freedom of expression under the European Human Rights Act by trying to force him to sell in kilos. Collins, Britain's latest Metric Martyr, has been warned by trading standards officers that he has to sell his produce in kilos or facing losing his licence. The warning came after undercover officers bought a bunch of grapes from him in imperial weight.

Mr Collins told an appeal aimed at lifting a condition on his licence compelling him to sell in kilos at Sutton Magistrates Court that he could not afford to replace his imperial scales with 500 metric ones. He also said he would not now switch to metric because his largely working-class customers do not understand it.

"Maybe I would have done in the beginning, but not now," said Collins, who has traded from a stall in Sutton High Street for the past 15 years. "My customers do not want me to." He said that it would be almost impossible to sell in metric because his customers were not confident in kilos.

He told the court: "If it's selling by the weight they always ask for it in pounds. Those who ask for it in kilos are just 1%. They very rarely do ask for it in kilos - only tourists or people I assume are tourists ask in kilos." He added: "It really would not be very easy from what they tell me to sell in kilos. They really do prefer to buy all things in imperial measurements. I cannot remember anyone saying to me I would rather by my stuff in kilos."

The local authority is breaching Collins' commercial freedom of expression under Article 10 of the Human Rights Act by trying to stop him advertising his goods in imperial weights, his barrister Quentin Richards argued. And the legislation used to stop him trading in this way is invalid because it was improperly brought, he added.

Using metric measurements will be compulsory by December 2009 and people will slowly become used to the new system as they learn more about the everyday uses of metric measurements, said Fiona Darroch for Sutton Council. She told the court: "The idea is to wean people off pounds and ounces and onto kilos. One might say forced, but one might also say, educate."

In April, Sunderland greengrocer Steve Thoburn became the first trader in Britain to be convicted for refusing to sell goods in metric measurements. He is to appeal to the High Court, backed by a £195,000 fighting fund from campaigners who do not want to see imperial measures scratched. The fund aims to cover Thoburn and other traders bringing legal action to try to keep imperial measures.

Just 29% of the British population find it easy to understand kilos, the court was told. Findings from an ICM survey commissioned by the British Weights & Measures Association in June found that 70% of British people, including a majority of 18-24-year-olds, can make sense of weights only in pounds and ounces. The court was told that while 51% of middle-class Britons said they were at home with using kilograms, just 18% of working-class Britons said they were confident in kilos.

The hearing was adjourned until tomorrow.

Another Press Association news release by Helen William:

A decision on whether a grocer will be allowed to continue selling his fruit and vegetables in pounds and ounces will be announced on Friday, magistrates said today.

Peter Collins, 51, of Sutton, Surrey, alleged that Sutton Council was breaching his commercial freedom of expression under the European Human Rights Act by trying to force him to sell in kilos. Collins, Britain's latest so-called metric martyr, has been warned by trading standards officers that he has to sell in kilos or face losing his licence.

Mr Collins argued at Sutton Magistrates Court that the legislation being used to stop him trading exclusively in pounds and ounces was invalid because it was improperly brought. He is appealing to lift a condition on his licence compelling him to sell in kilos.

Mr Collins, who has traded from a stall in Sutton High Street for the past 15 years, says his largely working class customers were not confident in kilos and only understood weights in pounds and ounces.

The following is from Christopher Booker's column in the Sunday Telegraph, July 15th, 2001:

The great metrication battle has taken an uglier turn. On Friday magistrates in Sutton, Surrey became the first actually to deprive a man of his livelihood for refusing to obey the EU directive that shopkeepers may sell goods only by metric measures. Instead of prosecuting Peter Collins, a market trader, for continuing to sell his fruit in pounds and ounces, Sutton council tried to do it by the back door, by withdrawing his licence to trade.

Mr Collins claimed it contravened the European Convention on Human Rights not to allow him to earn a living by selling in the only weights his customers understand. The magistrates disagreed, telling Mr Collins they would order him to pay the council's costs of £13,500 if he was rash enough to join his case to the appeal to be made later this year by the Metric Martyrs Fund.

Outside the courtroom the fund's organiser, Neil Herron, asked a Sutton trading standards official why they were not prosecuting Tesco and Asda for selling milk in plastic cartons by the pint (Brussels allows sale of milk by the pint but British regulations permit this only when it is in glass bottles).

The official said that if a complaint was received, it would be investigated. Mr Herron replied that he was hereby making that complaint, and could they please get on with it. Watch this space.

The following is from Helen Williams at the Press Association, dated Friday 13th, 2001:

Britain's latest so-called metric martyr today lost his battle to sell
fruit and vegetables in pounds and ounces.
Grocer Peter Collins, 51, from Sutton, Surrey, had claimed that Sutton
Council had breached his commercial freedom of expression under the
European Human Rights Act by trying to force him to sell in kilos.
He lost his case at Sutton Magistrates Court aimed at lifting a
condition on his licence compelling him to sell his goods in metric
measurements in line with European directives.
Costs of 13,000 were awarded to the council, which vowed to enforce
payment.
After the ruling, Mr Collins, who has traded from the stall in Sutton
High Street for 15 years, said that it was "very probable" that he would
appeal.
He said: "It's not the local council I'm fighting, it's Brussels. The
outcome of this case says that we do not make the law and if we do not
abide by Brussels' rules then woe betide you.
"This ruling is effectively saying that I should teach the public the
metric system and I do not see why I should do that.
"If my customers ask me for my goods in kilos I will serve them in kilos
but they will be disappointed because they are being forced to change their
way of life."
He had claimed that his largely working-class customers were not
confident in kilos, but the court ruled that there had been no evidence of
an "underlying demand" for an imperial system.
Trading standards officers had warned Mr Collins that he had to sell and
advertise his produce in kilos or face losing his licence.
The warning came after undercover officers bought a bunch of grapes from
him in imperial weights.
Tony Northcott, head of health and trading standards at Sutton Council,
said that they did not want to drive Mr Collins out of business but they
had to enforce the law.
He said: "The last thing that the council wants to do is to put him out
of business. We have been advising him and if he does not comply we will
have to consider what action to take.
"What we really want is for Mr Collins to comply with the law. We want
him to get on with his business so that we can get on with ours."
Michael Plumbe (correct), chairman of the British Weights and Measures
Association, said: "It is a perverse decision which is a complete negation
of British justice. It is a bad day for British justice. We believe we have
a strong case for appeal now."
The council had argued that using metric measurements will be compulsory
by December 2009 and that confidence in the new system will grow as people
get used to dealing in metric measurement.
Fiona Darroch, for Sutton Council, told the court: "The idea is to wean
people off pounds and ounces and onto kilos."
In April Sunderland greengrocer Steve Thoburn, 36, became the first
trader in Britain to be convicted for refusing to sell goods in metric
measurements.
He is to appeal to the High Court, backed by a 195,000 fighting fund
from campaigners who do not want to see imperial scrapped.
The fund aims to cover Mr Thoburn and other traders bringing legal
action to try to keep imperial measurements.
Neil Herron, of the Metric Martyr Defence Fund, said that as long as
market forces and principles were led by people wanting to buy goods in
pounds and ounces then there was little that the courts could do to stop
them.
He said: "We are in a situation where you can prosecute this man for
filling in pounds and ounces, but you can go out and drive in miles per
hour and drink pints of beer.
"They should only call for us stop selling in imperial when Tony Blair
announces the weight of his next baby in metric and everyone understands
the conversion.
"They should stop picking on the little men who are just trying to make
a living and educate the public properly about the metric system if they
want them to use it."

I would have thought it a basic human right for two individuals to make a private and verbal contract to transfer goods in any quantity they agree for any payment they agree. This is the basis of barter.

The government's reasoning is that intervention is needed in the form of consumer protection legislation to protect either party from fraud.
Obviously, in the case of the Metric Martyrs, there is no fraud; their offence was to provide information in the "wrong" language - lb/oz instead of metric.

you lot are a bunch of tossers, i want britain to be metric

Peter Collins - a name from the past..... Nearly 4 years & not one message in support? Perhaps the UK is not quite as "pro-imperial" as some posters would have us believe?????????

<<Nearly 4 years & not one message in support? Perhaps the UK is not quite as "pro-imperial" as some posters would have us believe?????????>>

Or perhaps people have realized that you can legally sell someone a pound of bananas; as long as you use legal scales. Or that you can legally show the price per pound as long as you also have price per kg.

In other words he wasn't arrested for selling in pounds at all.

Did I just see the new slogan being adopted by the UKMA?
Very subliminal and to the point.