The European Commission has proposed to give the labelling of goods in pounds and inches a reprieve until 2009, Patrick Smyth reports from Brussels. Responding to pressure from manufacturers in the US, where dual labelling in metric and imperial measures will continue, the Commission has agreed to lift the 2000 deadline for transition to metric-only labelling, but labels will have to display metric equivalents. Ireland's and Britain's derogation for the pint of beer and the right to use miles in air and sea transport is unaffected.