“The last time we tested opinion among our members there was a narrow majority in favour of lighter evenings,” says director of strategy Martin Haworth. However, the National Farmers’ Union of England and Wales says it has no strong views either way. Those living in Scotland voice particular concerns about people having to travel to work in the dark. Alex Salmond once called the campaign an attempt to "plunge Scotland into morning darkness".ĭangers of darker mornings: The pro-BST crowd points to the dangers of dark evenings, but those against year-round BST have suggested that children walking to school in the mornings could face higher risks in the dark.īenefits for early risers: Lighter mornings have traditionally been supported by postal workers, the construction industry and farmers. Scotland: One of the biggest obstacles to change has come from Scotland, where MPs warned that the sun would not rise until 10am in some northern parts of the country. Well-being: The Manchester Evening News says children, in particular, would feel the benefit and would be up to 20% more active during the longer evenings.Įnvironment: Cambridge University researchers also found that year-round BST would reduce CO2 pollution by at least 447,000 tonnes each year, the equivalent to more than 50,000 cars driving all the way around the world. The latest research estimates that around 100 lives would be saved a year by preventing accidents in the dark evenings, it says.Įconomy: Even after Brexit, it would have the economic benefit of putting UK businesses in the same time zone as most of their European counterparts. Traffic accidents: The AA backs the campaign for year-round BST in order to increase road safety. Tourism: The British Association of Leisure Parks, Piers and Attractions claimed in 2011 that lighter evenings would increase tourism earnings by between £2.5bn and £3.5bn. Pros of BST all year roundĮnergy: Researchers at the University of Cambridge found that an extra daily hour of sunlight in winter evenings could save £485m each year in electricity bills, as people use less light and heating. With the promise of longer days and more sunshine, over the years there have been repeated calls for British Summer Time to be made permanent. The scheme was abandoned three years later. Harold Wilson’s Labour government experimented with a return to Double BST in 1968, even though Scotland protested that it left northern parts of the country dangerously dark until 10am. This was intended both to increase productivity in the war industries and to help workers get home before the blackout began. He self-published a pamphlet called Waste of Daylight, which suggested that the clocks would move back 20 minutes each day for several days, to a total of 80 minutes. Willett, a builder from southeast London, proposed the idea after growing frustrated with having to cut short his rounds of golf at dusk. Who invented British Summer Time?īST was proposed in 1907 by William Willett, who happens to be the great-great-grandfather of Coldplay singer Chris Martin. In the days of coal fires and tallow lamps, this may have been true, says Forbes, but the advent of electrical light has wiped out much of this saving. It has also been suggested that BST reduces energy consumption. Why do we have BST?īritish Summer Time (BST), otherwise known as daylight saving time, was originally devised to keep factories open for longer in the summer – since there was enough light to do so. Does that mean more or less time in bed?Įveryone gets one hour less sleep when the clocks go forward. So why do the clocks change and will 2019 be the last time? When do the clocks go back?Īt 1am on 31 March, the last Sunday of the month, clocks will go forward one hour, marking the start of seven months of daylight saving time. Many people “find that even the hours' difference disturbs their sleeping pattern, with many people waking a lot earlier when the clocks jump forward”, says The Weather Channel, and this disturbance “can leave people feeling tired and irritable in their day - or just confused as to what time it is”. The use of BST is still hotly debated in Britain. Smartphones and electronic appliances should update themselves, but “you’ll still need to adjust your watch and the clocks around your house to avoid getting caught out”, iNews says.
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