Moving the clock forward

Bigpeetee

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Saw the prog tonight on the UK moving to central Europe time. I can't wait, all I can see are the positives, whilst I appreciate it won't suit all it think there are more positives than negatives.

After all, many of us have gone over the channel in winter and find ourselves an hour ahead, surprising to some, we cope, very well.

When the time comes I'm all for moving to CET

If the scots feel it will be bad for them, let them stay on GMT, we won't be the first country to have different time zones
 
Time

Personally I think that we should be on GMT permanently. Airline pilots use it, Ship's Captains use it. Actually why doesn't the whole world use it all the time. Why do we actually need different time zones? We Brits would still be fine with GMT. The yanks would soon get used to getting up at 5 o'clock and going to bed at whatevertime.
Thinking about it does mess with one's head though!!
 
BrianG said:
Personally I think that we should be on GMT permanently. Airline pilots use it, Ship's Captains use it. Actually why doesn't the whole world use it all the time. Why do we actually need different time zones? We Brits would still be fine with GMT. The yanks would soon get used to getting up at 5 o'clock and going to bed at whatevertime.
Thinking about it does mess with one's head though!!
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I am currently living in two time zones. GMT+1 in Spain and Sky UK TV time

Emmerdale starts at 8pm Corrie 8:30 and 9:30. It gives us a chance for a drink in the bar before we settle down for the night.

It is much lighter down here in Spain in the Winter sunset about 6pm (UK 4pm), Sunrise is still about 8am.

It is also almost daylight in northern Scotland 24 hrs in the summer but they have much shorter daylight hours in the winter.

Brittany is well west of GMT but operates CET with no problems.

Another group who use Universal Time Constant (UTC)/GMT are radio hams.

Its great being retired and using body clock time.
 
Hi

I don't care if you use Noddy and Bigears time but I do wish they would stop changing it twice a year.

Richard
 
An alternative, I believe was used in the war is double summertime, winter on GMT to suit the Scots, summer +2 hrs to make the most of the sun.

Would cause some confusion, Microsoft would need a patch and the Yanks don't care, they still want conference calls during their working day.
 
BrianG said:
Personally I think that we should be on GMT permanently. Actually why doesn't the whole world use it all the time.
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Ask an Australian!

Remember, there is nothing magical about GMT - the Greenwich meridian is just a random line which could have been drawn through Moscow if the Russians had got in first!
 
I live in Scotland and get up in the dark to go to work in the winter and come home in the dark. Does limit the winter wildcamping trips but it would be so much worse if we did move....

All for the english to have their own time zone....but trouble is they do forget there are 4 countries in the UK not just them.
We could always close the borders and require a visa to come wild camping in my beautiful country:D:p...more space and places for me:rolleyes::rolleyes:
 
As we do a lot of trade with Europe in would make sense to be on CET. When I did work at Airbus there was a lot of time lost between us & the French due to the difference in time. Being retired now it doesn't really effect me, battery went on my watch about 3 years ago so don't bother with what the time is except for maybe watching TV programs:rolleyes:, but with all the repeats & the ease to record them even this isn't critical.
 
I have a faint memory that many years ago, the clocks were not set back as a trial, because the farmers could have that extra hour of daylight. The following year it was back to normal. I am not sure if it was in England or Germany. I am quite sure it did happen. Anyone remember it?
 
David & Ann said:
I have a faint memory that many years ago, the clocks were not set back as a trial, because the farmers could have that extra hour of daylight. The following year it was back to normal. I am not sure if it was in England or Germany. I am quite sure it did happen. Anyone remember it?
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It was in the late 60s/early 70s and I think it happened for 2 or 3 years before being abandoned.
 
David & Ann said:
I have a faint memory that many years ago, the clocks were not set back as a trial, because the farmers could have that extra hour of daylight. The following year it was back to normal. I am not sure if it was in England or Germany. I am quite sure it did happen. Anyone remember it?
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This was first suggested in 1907 by a London Builder called William Willett. where it was proposed to move the clock forward by 20 minutes on each Sunday in April and reversing in the same way in September. The argument sounds familiar " It was reckoned that it would not only improve health and Happiness but it would save the country £2 1/2 million pounds, that was also taking into account the loss of earnings to the producers of artificial light."

A Bill was introduced in 1909 but no action was taken.

In April, 1916, was introduced as a wartime measure of economy. During the 1939/45 war Double daylight saving was introduced. In both instances the measure was abandoned after the war finished.

In 1968 to 1971 Britain tried the experiment of keeping BST - to be called British Standard Time - throughout the year, largely for commercial reasons because Britain would then conform to the time kept by other European Countries. This was not good for the school children of Scotland as it meant they had to always go to School in the dark. The experiment was eventually abandoned in 1972, Britain has kept GMT in winter and BST in summer.

For the full story Daylight Saving Time
 
John H said:
Come on now - I didn't say you weren't senile!!!! (whats a quip? Can you eat it?)
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Being half German, I hope my English is good enough. But SLANG words, I have a problem. I think a QUIP means, in slang, a remark. Or are you taking the p--s? :)
 
I still think it's a great idea to standardise our time with Europe. As Kontiki said, hours of business time are lost each year because like it or not, a lot of our trade is with Europe.

If people go and return from work in the dark in the winter, moving the clock will mean that the evening commute will be done more in daylight, as the year progresses more people will benefit from daylight in the evening.As for going to work/school in the morning, times have changed since the last trial in 68. Many children don't walk to school, they are driven. Once you are in work/school does it matter if it's dark for most people. Schools in North Wales have seen it fit to alter their start/finish times to suit the local requirements.

Whilst I appreciate that Scotland has dark mornings and evenings in the winter, they benefit from much longer hours of daylight in the summer, so by moving the clock they can benefit from even longer hours of daylight in the summer. Increasing tourism and generally benefiting from more daylight at usable times.

Whilst I love the early morning sunshine, I don't make full use of it as we are generally bound by the clock, Kontiki et al excepted.

As MH'rs we can barbie into the later hours

As far as I can see, this will benefit the majority.
 
David & Ann said:
Being half German, I hope my English is good enough. But SLANG words, I have a problem. I think a QUIP means, in slang, a remark. Or are you taking the p--s? :)
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Sorry, David - my English humour (and yes, you are right about the real meaning of the word).
 
I can understand that there are always going to be problems such as children's safety either going to school in the dark or coming home in the dark, maybe a solution to this is to provide all children with hi-vis vests/armbands. These are relatively cheap & as far as I am concerned they would make a child more visible than they are now even in daylight.
Although I had been to Portugal before, last year when we crossed over from Spain I didn't realize that they were on the same time as the UK. Took a few days to figure out that shops seemed to be opening late & staying open later :eek:. The result was though that we were up & about earlier than most, not that it mattered & although we didn't bother changing any clocks we gradually fell into line with everybody else.
 
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It's usualy those that haven't traveled that moan the most about moving the time.

I used to work down south and regularly traveled to Europe with work, the light difference between The Benelux countries and the South of England was marginal except that the time difference meant that more use could be made of it.

I know that when south, if I phoned my wife in N Wales, she would be out in the garden when it was quite dark there, my friend in Scotland would still be in the sunlight when it was black.

People can adapt very quickly to a change of time zone, when I worked in the tropics, sun rise/sunset hardly varied throughout the whole year, people coped very well with that.

So bring it on, change the clock 1 Hr forward.

As for people like Radio Hams who use GMT, it's only those that use a log book now it's not mandatory, do those who have log books connected via the PC & internet use GMT or Local?
 
John H said:
Sorry, David - my English humour (and yes, you are right about the real meaning of the word).
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Not to worry JH. 5 years+ in England and I have come to the conclusion that the British have a far greater sense of humour than us Germans.
 
champstar said:
I live in Scotland and get up in the dark to go to work in the winter and come home in the dark. Does limit the winter wildcamping trips but it would be so much worse if we did move....

All for the english to have their own time zone....but trouble is they do forget there are 4 countries in the UK not just them.
We could always close the borders and require a visa to come wild camping in my beautiful country:D:p...more space and places for me:rolleyes::rolleyes:
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Ah well, just when I think that we have all finally kissed & made up, along comes
another well balanced Scotsman with his wired in prejudices.
Sorry to disappoint, but I have always known & accepted that we English share these
Islands with several other tribes, & that we all have an opinion on things that affect us.
Surprisingly so does Westminster, that’s why our close neighbours opinions are being asked.

Dezi
 
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