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Daylight saving time will be around Europe on Sunday, in what could be the last time on the continent.
Key points:
- European Council recommended member states stop changing clocks in spring and autumn
- Survey shows most Europeans want the time change abolished
- A clear majority want "permanent summertime" to be imposed
For the past 16 years the European Union (EU) Directive 2000/84 / EC, which states the switchover dates are the last weekend of March and the last weekend of October.
But last August, the European Council is a member of the European Council.
It came after 4.6 million people from the United States, with 84 percent of those wanting to change the time to be abolished.
The clear majority of those people would prefer "permanent summertime", while 36 percent were in favor of "permanent standard time".
"We are in the process of being surveyed, and we expect it to happen," EU president Jean-Claude Juncker told the German broadcaster ZDF in August.
"I will recommend to the commission that, if you ask the citizens, then you have to do what the citizens say.
"We will decide on this today, and then it will be the turn of the member states and the European Parliament."
The measure still needs to be approved by the European Parliament, and member states would then have the choice to opt out of the time change.
Currently there are three time zones in the EU: Greenwich Mean Time (GMT), which is used by the UK, Ireland and Portugal; Central Europe Time (CET), which 17 EU member states and is an hour ahead of GMT; and Eastern European time, which is used in eight states and is two hours ahead of GMT.
Debate Over Daylight Saving Drawbacks and Benefits
There has been a conjecture about the benefits and drawbacks of daylight saving time, with those in favor of saving money.
Critics say the time changes upset sleep patterns and can have negative health effects.
Another issue that could arise is the possibility of the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland would be in two different times after the UK exits the European Union in March next year.
The Republic would have to have a time-zone with a difference in the time of day.
The UK currently has British Summer Time (GMT + 1) which has been in place since 1916, when it was introduced during World War I to retain coal.
In 2011 the British Government proposed a three-year trial of a move to CET – GMT + 1 in winter and GMT + 2 in summer – with the idea that lighter evenings would reduce traffic accidents.
But the plan was discarded after it drew opposition from Scotland and the north of England, where it would have meant some areas until 10am during winter.
topics:
world-politics,
government-and-politics,
health,
European Union,
united-kingdom
