A CAMPAIGNER for the so-called Metric Martyrs movement in the North-East last night claimed an unofficial moratorium appears to be in place over the use of old fashioned measures.

Neil Herron claims that millions of offences are committed daily by traders using imperial measures such as pounds and ounces - contrary to EU law - yet only four prosecutions have taken place in the past four years.

Mr Herron, campaign director of the Metric Martyrs Defence Fund, also backed the view of the new Conservative chairman of the Local Government Association Peter Chalke.

He has said that far more important issues require the attention of trading standards officers and that it is not a priority to crack down on traders failing to comply with EU metric rules.

Mr Herron said it meant the campaign was now "close to a victory", adding: "It is not seen by the vast majority to be in the public interest to bring traders before the courts and attempts at prosecutions would simply land more negative publicity on the doorsteps of local councils."

The Metric Martyrs' campaign was sparked by the late Steven Thoburn, 39, a Sunderland grocer who achieved prominence after he was prosecuted by Sunderland City Council's trading standards department in 2001 for offences under the 1985 Weights and Measures Act.

Along with traders in other parts of the country he took his case to the High Court, the House of Lords and Europe, but was unable to overturn his conditional discharge conviction.

In February, the European Court of Human Justice rejected a Metric Martyrs' bid to have the issue of selling in imperial measures reviewed after they claimed it was an infringement of their human rights.