Britain in gloom as clocks go back
BRITONS face a day of chaos tomorrow as the clocks turn back an hour, plunging the country into evening darkness.
A third of us will oversleep, 20 per cent will wake up to a cold house after forgetting to change the central heating timer and one in eight will arrive at work late over the coming days.
Research by energy company npower also found that almost half of parents say the change in daylight hours will affect their children’s sleep patterns.
It will take an average of three days to readjust, with 40 per cent of people polled saying it would be harder to get their children to school on Monday.
The warnings come as growing numbers of politicians, businesses and families back the Daily Express Time For Change crusade.
The plan would see British Summer Time retained in the autumn, with the clocks moving forward another hour the following March until October, bringing increased daylight at the end of the day all year round.
Boris Johnson, Mayor of London, said the economy could be boosted if the clocks were in line with Central European Time.
He said: “It’s barmy that a great trading city and leading global financial centre like London is so out of kilter with the rest of Europe.
“We do immense amounts of trade with our partners across the Channel and all the evidence shows we have little to lose and much to gain by setting our clocks in line with Paris, Frankfurt and other big cities.”
A survey by Thomson Holidays also revealed that almost three-quarters of Britons would go out more in winter if they had more sunlight in the afternoon, a move that would boost spending.
Spokeswoman Liz Bartlett said: “Our survey revealed a clear link between lighter days, socialising and spending.
“People find the lack of daylight in winter very depressing, making them more likely to stay at home and spend less. It’s time to review the clock change and bring a little more light into the public’s lives.”
A report in the British Medical Journal suggests that keeping the clocks on British Summer Time would encourage older people with poorer vision and hearing, who do not go out in the dark for fear of assault, to take part in leisure and social activities.
Dr Mayer Hillman, of research body the Policy Studies Institute, says there is strong public support for the clock change, with about four-fifths of the population of England and Wales ready to welcome the extra hour.
People in Scotland are evenly divided. Bookmaker Paddy Power has laid on odds that tomorrow could be one of the last times our clocks go out of synch with the rest of Europe. It is offering odds of 33/1 on 2010 being the year it happens and 9/4 on a change by 2014.
