ARM or Active Resistance to Metrication is a new development in the pro-sovereignty movement. Tired of writing letters which are ignored or derided, ARM contains direct action activists who are prepared to physically correct illegal metric signs, often in broad daylight.

ARM has reported several daring escapades, and was even reported in The Sunday Telegraph on 3rd March 2002.

For example, on Saturday 23rd February ARM corrected 130 metric signs in Hastings, beating by 8 the previous one-day de-metrication record set in Ely on 10th November, and notching up the 1000th de-metricated sign.

However, last year at 7.45am on Saturday 27th October, ARM Activist Tony Bennett was arrested in his house, and charged with two offences: (1) theft of a number of metric signs, and (2) damage to one metric sign by using black aerosol spray over the metric distance. This related to a number of illegal metric signs which had been erected along the motorway by a company called Transco/McAlpine.

He was finally released at 5.10pm, having had approximately twelve hairs of his head removed by the root by Police Officers under new regulations that apply to those who refused to have two DNA swabs taken from their mouths.

He was bailed to appear at Maidstone Magistrates Court on Tuesday 30th October 2001 at 9.45am, and he told us then:
"I shall of course be pleading 'Not Guilty'. Dozens of highly paid Highways Engineers working for Councils and Transport Companies have flouted the Traffic Signs Regulations 1994 which require all distances to be in British units. So far as I am aware, none of them has ever suffered so much as a reprimand for erecting illegal signs, causing confusion or even possible danger to motorists, and in many cases incurring unnecessary expenditure when they have had to amend or replace the signs. It would be very ironic if I were to be found guilty for simply removing an illegality from our roads."

"If you're an activist and you're not upsetting somebody then you're not doing your job properly."

He pointed out that the signs were returned, albeit with the metric distance corrected to imperial, and the company which owned the signs has since admitted it now recognises metric road signs to be illegal in the UK.

His court date was set for 4 April 2002, and below he tells us about what happened.

Tony is involved in a socially and morally conscious effort to ensure that illegal metric road signs are adjusted to conform with the law. He believes it is his "civic duty" to maintain the law on this matter.

He is a trained solicitor and has said, "We do not want to see the British way of life changed. I will protest this case for as long as it takes."
 

 
Tony Bennett further informed us :

"I have now been arrested five times in connection with sign amendments/removals.
The outcomes to date:
1 - Stansted Airport, metric distance painted over - Charged but charge dropped.
2 - Transco Signs, Kent - removal of illegal signs - Case in progress: 2nd day on 1 May. See report below.
3 - Brentwood, alleged 'conspiracy to cause damage to road signs' - No charges, CPS ordered matter to be dropped.
4 - Brentwood again - investigation triggered by Sunday Telegraph article of 3 March, and photo! - Not charged, bailed to Brentwood Police Station, 8 May.
5 - Lee Valley Park Sign amendments - Not charged, bailed to Brentwood Police Station 8 May.

Total time spent in cells to date: 21 hours
Cost of Police time?
Cost of CPS time?
Cost of Court time?
Cost of Judges' time?
Prosecution Solicitors' and Barristers' costs?
Defence Solicitors' costs? (includes 4 times at Police Stations plus Kent case)
Michael Shrimpton's fees?
Costs of erecting replacement signs in Imperial units by Councils who mistakenly erected metric ones?
Costs paid out to me so far: £367.50. In all, quite a lot of money!"

"Contrast this with: Amount of time spent by Stephen Byers and staff of the Department of Transport warning Councils about erecting illegal metric road signs: NIL (They say it's not their job!)"

"The fact is, metric distance signs are illegal."

"The case on the 4 April opened with a submission by Michael Shrimpton that the whole trial was an abuse of process by the Police and the CPS since it was manifest that the action of removing Transco's signs was for the purpose of ending Transco's practice of erecting illegal metric signs around their pipeline works and not for personal gain of any kind."

"The District Judge, Michael Kelly, rejected that submission."

"The prosecution then called their two witnesses and the Judge read the Police PACE interview with me - in which I readily admitted taking the signs and explained why I had done so."

"Michael Shrimpton then made a further submission of 'No Case to Answer'. After retiring, the Judge came back to announce that he also rejected that submission. As time had run out, the case was adjourned for a further one day at Sevenoaks, on Wednesday 1 May."

"A significant piece of evidence from Transco/McAlpine's witnesses was that the illegal metric signs were replaced with legal ones in yards within 48 hours of my having removed their original illegal signs - a result not obtained on many previous occasions of politely writing to the company about their illegal metric signs, going back to BWMA member Paul Rippingham's letter to them back in 1997."

"Another fact to emerge was that neither prosecution witness knew who actually owned the signs - a problem for the prosecution. Indeed, the prosecution, on discovering that they had charged me with stealing the sign from 'Transco/McAlpine Construction' and being told by their own witnesses that no such company existed, hastily applied to amend the charge to 'theft from McAlpine' - an application the Judge did accept."

"However, no such company exists either! The signs were being used by McAlpine PPS Joint Venture Systems but were probably not owned by them."

"Transco & McAlpine PPS have both admitted the signs they had been using were illegal and could offer no rational explanation as to why they had been doing so."

"I am really grateful to all those who have supported me one way or another on this case despite the apparent vandalism of removing traffic signs from the highway. If nothing else so far, I think I have helped to draw more public attention to the illegality of all metric distance signs in the UK."