EU rules bonfire: Veg allowed to be sold in pounds and ounces and pint glass crown returns

16 September 2021, 22:50 | Updated: 17 September 2021, 17:42

Vegetables sold in pounds and ounces and the crown on a pint glass are set to return as part of a bonfire of EU rules.

The Government is reviewing a ban on marking and selling products in imperial units as Lord Frost plans to look at which regulations can be dropped post-Brexit.

EU law was retained as part of the UK’s departure from the bloc but now Lord Frost, Boris Johnson’s Brexit supremo, is looking to boost productivity with adjusted regulations.

It could allow for the voluntary printing of the iconic crown stamp on pint glasses and for vendors to sell in pounds rather than kilos.

The minister told peers: "A lot of things haven't happened that the gloom-mongers said would happen and I don't think are going to happen."

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He added that "this economy and this country is prospering vastly already under the arrangements that we are putting in place" and said: "High standards need to reflect the context we are operating in.

"I am sure there will be change, but don't believe those changes will result in regression of standards."

The reforms to laws would "improve the productivity of the UK by putting in place regulations that are tailored to our conditions", he claimed.

Besides the iconic crown print, digital driving licences, test certificates and MOT processes are also included in planned reforms.

Regulations around clinical trials and medical devices will also be tweaked, but Lord Frost insisted changing rules does not meant standards would recede.

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"We are a high standards country. That doesn't mean we don't intend to change them. The world moves on,” he said.

"High standards need to reflect the context we are operating in.

"I am sure there will be change, but don't believe those changes will result in regression of standards."

Shadow international trade secretary Emily Thornberry sarcastically "the marvellous Brexit deal which is working so well at present".

She said the praise for post-Brexit opportunities comes as the UK "faces continuing shortages of staff and supplies exacerbated by the Government's Brexit deal" and "businesses across the country face mounting losses in trade with Europe".