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“From simplifying the EU’s mind-bogglingly complex beer and wine duties to proudly restoring the crown stamp onto the side of pint glasses, we’re cutting back on EU red tape and bureaucracy and restoring common sense to our rulebook.”

Boris Johnson, Press Release

30 December 2021

Facts

Boris Johnson announced that the crown stamp would be “restored” on pint glasses as part of a New Year’s Eve press statement that his government would go "further and faster" to “maximise the opportunities of Brexit.”

It is true that in 2006 EU legislation implemented the Conformité Européenne (CE) mark as the symbol of an accurate measure on pint glasses. This meant all glasses had to bear the CE mark, but EU rules did not ban the crown mark. 

A spokesperson for the European Commission emphasised this point when they denied that EU rules had stopped the UK from having the crown stamp on glasses, telling the BBC: “EU law does not prevent markings from being placed on products, so long as it does not overlap or be confused with the CE mark." 

Verdict

It was impossible to “restore” the crown mark since EU rules did not ban the crown mark from pint glasses in the first place. Boris Johnson’s claim that he was “restoring” the crown stamp was misleading. 

This was the first public outing we can find of a misleading claim which would be repeated time and again by members of the Johnson government as a Brexit benefit. 

We approached Boris Johnson's office, No10 Press Office and the Cabinet Office to give them a chance to comment, but received no response.

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