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Mine's a 568.3ml
Europe is calling time on Britain's pints
People referring to a slippery slope are often viewed as paranoid and greeted with howls of derision. Yet this is exactly what's going on with the (other) EU's enforced metrification. It's true what they say about the European Union - give them an inch and they'll take a mile... and a pint!
The European Commission, effectively the executive branch of the European Union, has ordered the British government to name the date for completing the abolition of pints, miles and acres. Leaving aside the fact that nobody but the British people should be ordering the British government to do anything, this is still a worrying development.
Follow up:
In 2001 Steven Thoburn, the Metric Martyr, (may he res in peace) lost a court battle to be allowed to continue labelling his bananas, at his market stall, in pounds and ounces. Now seriously, what do Mr Thoburn's bananas
matter to some Eurocrat in Brussels who may never set foot inside the UK?
The Observer thinks legions of British drinkers will soon be downing 568ml of lager. Can you picture the Harp adverts rewritten? "568 millilitres of Harp" just will never be as catchy as "Pinta Harp? Pinta Harp?" will it?
I however am worried about something much more sinister; the potential for the sale of beer and cider to be sold in quantities of 500ml rather than a pint. It'd probably not look much different and it's a much easier number to work with. You'd hardly put it past the marketing folk to decide "Half a Harp?" (litre of) could catch on better - and do you think they'll reduce the price accordingly? Ha!
I'll not even start on the thought of road signs and speed limits in km! In Canada the top speed's 100km/h - only 63 mph. Who wants to bet on Britain following suit should we adopt km?