Single/Double Summer Time. AKA: Lighter Evenings (Experiment) Bill UK

Message Bookmarked

Bookmark Removed

Not sure if this question has been asked as I've been away for a week and couldn't find anything in the archives. But I heard about this before I went away, and it seems plausible it may happen:

http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld200405/ldhansrd/pdvn/lds06/text/60324-01.htm#60324-01_head0

Basically, It boils down to this:

This Autumn. instead of moving the clocks back an hour, as you know resulting in lighter mornings, but darker evenings, the clocks will stay at their present time 1 hour ahead of GMT. In theory resulting in a happier, safer nation. Finally able to catch a few minutes of sunlight after work in even deepest winter, with fewer rush-hour fatalities, and less energy use as lights will stay off for longer.

And not only this, but when we get to Spring next year, the clocks will be moved forward an hour - effectively making the UK 2 hours ahead of GMT, but resulting in light evenings lasting until almost 11pm in June/July, and the sun rising later, meaning sleep will be easier during those too-light/noisy Seagull months.

In the past the idea has been mooted, and even tried, but scrapped, because Scotland have moaned that they don't get any light until sometime around midday - however, this time around the Scottish Parliament can elect to stay with the Status Quo - effectively putting them in a different time zone from the rest of the UK.

Personally the idea of reduced energy use, better safety, and LONG LONG evenings in summer makes this a no-brainer, but what do you think?

― Chewshabadoo (Chewshabadoo), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:10 (twenty years ago)

Without thinking it through, I would LOVE THIS to happen.

― steal compass, drive north, disappear (tissp), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:13 (twenty years ago)

why not just change working hours instead? although it'd be cool to have to adjust my watch everytime i go to scotland

― ken c (ken c), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:15 (twenty years ago)

Yes, but it's GREENWICH mean time. It is our NATIONAL RIGHT to have control over time!!! This is an outrage. Alert the authorities.

(Personally I wouldn't mind ditching the shift and leaving it on either zone, but honestly just quit the shifting about, I hate it.)

― Coffee, Pizza and Boris Johnson Playing In My Smoke Free Living Room, Pls (kate), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:16 (twenty years ago)

yay to this.

― teh_kit!!1 has 5 friends (g-kit), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:17 (twenty years ago)

in this internet day and age we shouldn't have a timezone at all. flexitime all the way innit.

― ken c (ken c), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:18 (twenty years ago)

No, we should be MORE rigorous with a SINGLE TIME ZONE SYSTEM to stop all these nasty times theives from stealing our inalienable British Right To Time!

― Coffee, Pizza and Boris Johnson Playing In My Smoke Free Living Room, Pls (kate), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:20 (twenty years ago)

in an ideal world, office work should happen between 10pm and 6am, when it's dark outside. and when you come out of work it's just getting light and people can sit in the park until it gets dark, you go home, and sleep.

― ken c (ken c), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:21 (twenty years ago)

maybe 1am - 9am is more realistic actually for the light outside after work

― ken c (ken c), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:23 (twenty years ago)

In an ideal world, office work would not be necessary.

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:25 (twenty years ago)

So Scotland might be in a different time zone from the rest of the UK? I'm going to have to go away and sit down and think about what it might be like living in Gretna or Berwick or somewhere like that! It's like something from Doctor Who!

― Dadaismus Is A Very Magic Fellow (Dada), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:27 (twenty years ago)

The farmers put the boot in on this before didn't they? Thus demonstrating their disproportionate influence over the nation. Maybe they are not so powerful now though?

― Ned T.RIfle II (Ned T.Rifle II), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:31 (twenty years ago)

I don't recall the farmers being concerned about the foot-and-mouth disease their stupid practices helped spread.

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:33 (twenty years ago)

I thought it was the fact that Scottish schoolchildren were getting knocked down and, like, killed walking to school in the morning? Thankfully, no need to worry about that, as only poor Scottish schoolchildren will be getting killed in future.

― Dadaismus Is A Very Magic Fellow (Dada), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:34 (twenty years ago)

haha (although I shouldn't really be laughing)

Apparently, it's not much of an issue, because their are so few farm workers these days, and they work to the daylight anyway, so it would not massively affect them.

― Chewshabadoo (Chewshabadoo), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:34 (twenty years ago)

I thought it was the fact that Scottish schoolchildren were getting knocked down and, like, killed walking to school in the morning? Thankfully, no need to worry about that, as only poor Scottish schoolchildren will be getting killed in future.

― steal compass, drive north, disappear (tissp), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:35 (twenty years ago)

All things considered, some better formatting could've been applied there.

― steal compass, drive north, disappear (tissp), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:37 (twenty years ago)

The last time it was introduced, schoolchildren in Scotland had to wear fluorescent bands and stuff when going to school in the morning. I'm trying to imagine what would happen if middle class parents in the South East were told that the government was introducing a law that would put their children in such potential danger that the wearing of safety gear was recommended.

― Dadaismus Is A Very Magic Fellow (Dada), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:40 (twenty years ago)

But... but... isn't the point here that Scotland can choose not to be part of this bill? Or am I missing the point?

― steal compass, drive north, disappear (tissp), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:41 (twenty years ago)

You think that is in any way practical?

― Dadaismus Is A Very Magic Fellow (Dada), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:42 (twenty years ago)

Wouldn't the problem of schoolchildren being run over in Scotland be more propitiously solved by jailing the drivers who run them over?

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:43 (twenty years ago)

Anti-motorist tree-hugger!!!!!!!

― Dadaismus Is A Very Magic Fellow (Dada), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:44 (twenty years ago)

You think that is in any way practical?

I don't see how it necessarily changes anything.

― steal compass, drive north, disappear (tissp), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:46 (twenty years ago)

Ban cars in Scotland! What do they need them for up there, anyway? What's wrong with a tractor? Except for the Cockbridge to Tomintoul road, which should be converted into an 18-lane autobahn.

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:49 (twenty years ago)

Can Bars!

― steal compass, drive north, disappear (tissp), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:49 (twenty years ago)

Ban Cars & Can Bars: A New Health Policy for A New Britain

― steal compass, drive north, disappear (tissp), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:52 (twenty years ago)

this would be fantastic.

maybe i'm imagining it, but i thought that statistics showed that the number of extra scottish children killed in the mornings would be dwarved by the number of lives saved in the evenings?

― toby (tsg20), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:55 (twenty years ago)

MORNINGIST!

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:55 (twenty years ago)

I don't see how it necessarily changes anything.

-- steal compass, drive north, adjust clock, disappear (tiss...)

― ken c (ken c), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:56 (twenty years ago)

Tractors would be able to kill schoolchildren more efficiently than cars can, therefore i thoroughly approve.

― ken c (ken c), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:57 (twenty years ago)

actually i was thinking of a bulldozer i think. but tractors will cause a slower and more painful death, so approval stands

― ken c (ken c), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:58 (twenty years ago)

seriously, ban school children, not cars.

― ken c (ken c), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:58 (twenty years ago)

I'm reporting you to the Daily Record, so I am.

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Friday, 31 March 2006 09:59 (twenty years ago)

I'm old enough to remember when they stopped moving the clocks.

It was very strange, going to school in the dark.

― mark grout (mark grout), Friday, 31 March 2006 10:01 (twenty years ago)

I think time zones should be decided by local councils. If it was done properly you'd only be a couple of taxi rides from 24 hour drinking.

― Onimo (GerryNemo), Friday, 31 March 2006 10:52 (twenty years ago)

I'm cool with this, as long as we can still keep siesta

― Konal Doddz (blueski), Friday, 31 March 2006 10:58 (twenty years ago)

I don't like this talk of killing schoolchildren though. Just dwarving them is surely enough.

― Konal Doddz (blueski), Friday, 31 March 2006 11:00 (twenty years ago)

You are assuming that kids in Scotland actually go to school though.

― JohnFoxxsJuno (JohnFoxxsJuno), Friday, 31 March 2006 11:44 (twenty years ago)

1968-71, according to Wikipedia - that's the last time we were at UTC+1 all year round. They did the double summer time thing during WW2 and a staggered version of it in 1947 (put the clocks forward by an hour on two occasions in the spring, back twice in autumn).

Swings and roundabouts, innit? I can imagine getting my daughter to bed during BDST would involve painting the windows black. Which would be handy in the event of a nuclear blast too.

― Michael Jones (MichaelJ), Friday, 31 March 2006 12:46 (twenty years ago)

Not to mention drawing the curtains (cue standard gag involving sketchbook, crayons etc.).

And then in 1971, BST went decimal and that was the end of that.

― Marcello Carlin (nostudium), Friday, 31 March 2006 12:48 (twenty years ago)

I would rather stay on GMT all year.

― jel -- (jel), Friday, 31 March 2006 15:42 (twenty years ago)

MENTALIST!

― Chewshabadoo (Chewshabadoo), Friday, 31 March 2006 21:15 (twenty years ago)

You must be logged in to post. Please either login here, or if you are not registered, you may register here.