

Lighter Later campaign to shift the clocks forwards giving us an extra hour of daylight in the evenings - What do you think?

(286 Posts)
JustineMumsnet (MNHQ) Mon 29-Mar-10 14:46:04

What do we think of this campaign to move the clocks forward by an hour all year round?


On the day of the spring clock change 10:10 is launching the Lighter Later campaign to brighten the nation's days, simply by changing the clocks so we are awake when the sun is out.

10:10 is proposing we shift our clocks to give us one extra hour of daylight in the evenings, all year round. In other words, the UK would shift to GMT+1 in the winter and GMT+2 in spring/summer.

If this was implemented the entire country would, overnight, be one step closer to a 10% reduction in its carbon emissions, as well as happier, healthier and better off. This is a great example of how action on climate change need not be negative, long-term or overly complicated, but rather simple, common-sensical and with multiple benefits.

Franny Armstrong, 10:10 founder and director of the climate change blockbuster The Age Of Stupid said

"Hands up who doesn't want our country to be safer, lighter, more prosperous and with less pollution? And who doesn't want to save money on their electricity bills without lifting a finger?"

This simple change would save almost half-a-million tonnes of CO2 each year1. That's equivalent to taking 185,000 cars off the road permanently.

But, as with so many of the simple behavioural changes 10:10 is recommending to people and organisations, this policy initiative has many benefits beyond the environment.

- Road Safety This policy could save over 100 fatalities on the nation's roads each year.

- Energy bills Consumers and businesses would use less energy thus saving money!

- Tourism & jobs It is estimated that, as a result of the measures proposed by the Lighter Later campaign, 60,000-80,000 jobs will be created through increased leisure & tourism, bringing an extra £2.5-3.5 billion into the economy each year.

- Prevent accidents. More daylight could prevent an estimated 1,000 serious injuries every year.

- Crime Lighter evening would reduce crime and fear of crime.

- Health. More daylight means more time for sports and outdoor activities.

These knock-on benefits mean that lighter evenings are now a more attractive prospect than ever. And people have finally started to take notice. From tourism trade bodies to road safety campaigners, and from sporting organisations to serving Government ministers, a new movement for lighter evenings is growing day by day.

10:10 is calling on individuals, businesses and organisations alike to add their voices to the call for lighter evenings all year round by visiting

Article about it here.

AntoinetteOuradi Mon 29-Mar-10 14:48:31

I love it. Don't usually like MN campaigns as they are scarily politically correct, but I love this one.

I thought the reason why the daylight hours are as they are now so that its daylight earlier in the mornings to make it safer for kids to go to school.

If you gain an hour of daylight in the evening you're going to lose it in the morning and if that means walking to school in the dark I'm not sure its a good idea.

No thanks. My understanding is that when they tried it before, it increased the number of RTAs etc up here in Scotland because of the darker mornings. I'd sooner have at least some light in the mornings, rather than a bit extra in the evenings.

AntoinetteOuradi Mon 29-Mar-10 14:54:28

What about coming home from school? My DCs walk to school and back. In winter, it's pitch black when they come out at 4.15, never mind by the time they have walked home. I'd personally prefer it to be lighter in the evenings.

AntoinetteOuradi Mon 29-Mar-10 14:55:22

Why this myth about RTAs only happening on dark mornings?

GooseyLoosey Mon 29-Mar-10 14:55:57

I would prefer it lighter. Why bother changing times at all, why not stay on BST all year long?

skidoodly Mon 29-Mar-10 14:56:31

Unless you are planning to move the position of britain on the globe or have the earth spin more slowly you are not going to create more daylight hours.

This daft proposal will mean that in winter it will be dark until most people are in work. No thanks.

I guess I hadn't really thought about schoold finishing at 4:15. Here even the secondary schools finish at 3:00pm so still daylight even in winter.

geekgirl Mon 29-Mar-10 14:57:25

I would welcome this so much. Living in a rural area, there is literally nothing to do here after school in late autumn/winter. It gets too dark to go outside almost as soon as we've walked back from school, the local swimming pools aren't open for general swimming in the afternoons and there is just nothing to do but hang around indoors. Drives me mad. I'd much rather have light in the afternoon than in the morning - it would improve the children's health and quality of life.

Indith Mon 29-Mar-10 15:02:09

I would like to see how all the savings have been calculated. I'm not sure I agree.

In the winter when it is dark as you go to work/school and dark when you get home it isn't going to change much, you will just need the lights on until later in the morning be it in school/work or at home. Similarly most people will still be travelling in the darl or dusk and morning commutes will still be dark or darker than before.

Will it really promote tourism and outdoor sports? I don't think an hour really makes for much change and in the depths of winter it would just mean getting dark at 5 instead of 4 so still dark after work for most people. As for tourists, well I don't really think tourists who come in winter retire to their hotel rooms at 4pm anyway. Again, it is only an hour which really isn't much, it isn't going to make attractions open later really is it since they are generally open til 5 or later anyway.

Aside from all of that, I can cope with it getting light at 9 and dark at 4 but the thought of getting up at 5 or 6am with children then having to wait until 10 for it to be properly light just makes me want to curl up in a ball and cry.

skidoodly Mon 29-Mar-10 15:02:42

The lives of a few Scottish school children are a fair price to pay so that children in rural England aren't stuck in the house after school.

AntoinetteOuradi Mon 29-Mar-10 15:03:27

Ditto, Geekgirl. 'Tis not right for small children to be stuck indoors in the dark after school every day for months on end.

AntoinetteOuradi Mon 29-Mar-10 15:05:16

No, skidoodly, the lives of a few late-finishing primary children in England (like, f'rinstance, mine) are a fair price to pay for the Scots to have more light in the morning.

geekgirl Mon 29-Mar-10 15:08:28

hmm @skidoodly. My children also finish school late. One of mine has a music lesson in the village just after school and needs to take a torch in winter to get home. I don't see how you can claim that dark mornings are more dangerous than dark afternoons.

skidoodly Mon 29-Mar-10 15:19:37

Well if primary school children finish so late presumably they also start late. So they can go out playing before school.

Tee2072 Mon 29-Mar-10 15:24:40

What on earth is RTA?

Anyway, I think its a horrid outdated idea that we change the clocks at all. We have a thing called electricity now. We should use it.

Oh but gasp that isn't very green of me, is it? Too bad.

JodieO Mon 29-Mar-10 15:27:05

Personally I prefer the way it is. I would hate to have darker mornings. It's supposed to be light in the mornings to wake your body up naturally, so surely more dark mornings would increase the rate of SAD sufferers and also depression? It is linked to sunlight. The body's natural sleep wake cycle would mess up a lot imo and have more long reaching effects than "climate change".

JodieO Mon 29-Mar-10 15:27:27

RTA = road traffic accidents.

Tee2072 Mon 29-Mar-10 15:29:45

Thank you Jodie!

GrimmaTheNome Mon 29-Mar-10 15:39:58

I think we should semi-hibernate in winter.

There was a piece in the sat or sun times suggestion that the setting of timezone should be devolved so that Scotland could deal with its few daylight hours in the way that best suited the Scots, and leave the rest of the UK to decide what was best for them.

skidoodly Mon 29-Mar-10 15:51:25

So will people in the north of England be able to choose to be in a different timezone to little boys who have to go to music lessons in the dark?

Bramshott Mon 29-Mar-10 15:54:05

I think it's fine. I hate dark mornings - so hard to wake up.

booboobeedoo Mon 29-Mar-10 16:00:52

I was thinking about this today. I agree with a campaign for lighter evenings. Can I ask a silly question - why can't we just be on summer time (GMT+1) all the year round? Would this help?

Snorbs Mon 29-Mar-10 16:02:54

I'd like to see some justification for the figures given for supposed benefits. Deaths in traffic accidents reduced by 100pa? So commuting on cold, wet, possibly icy roads on a winter's morning will be safer if you do it in the dark rather than with at least a bit of daylight? hmm

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