U.K. Lawmaker Calls for Trial Extension of Daylight Saving

The U.K. should try extending daylight saving time into autumn and spring months in order to save energy and cut the country’s emis, chairman of Parliament’s said.

Yeo’s panel yesterday heard evidence from , which said about 1,300 megawatts of power could be slashed from peak evening usage if clocks aren’t put back an hour at the end of October. That’s the equivalent of a large power station or 100,000 homes. University of Cambridge researchers told the panel 447,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions could be cut by putting clocks an hour forward all year.

“At a time when public finances are tight, making better use of the available daylight is a cheap and cheerful way for the U.K. to do its bit in reducing emissions,” Yeo said today in an e-mailed statement. “I am calling on the government to launch a full scale trial. Until we do this, we will all be in the dark about whether this idea really could help.”

The U.K. has a target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 32 percent from 1990 levels to help fight climate change. Prime Minister David Cameron has pledged his government will be the “greenest ever,” and Energy and Climate Change Secretary Chris Huhne plans to publish a draft law by year-end to help insulate 26 million homes and slash electricity use.

Daylight saving time this year began on March 28 and ends on Oct. 31. Yeo said Parliament is due to vote on extending daylight saving in December, though he didn’t specify how long he’d like to see it extended.

Peak Demand

Alan Smart, operations manager for National Grid, told the committee yesterday that the change could cut peak power use in November, February and March. It would only have a marginal effect in December and January.

The proposal from Cambridge would involve putting the clocks forward from the current times by an hour all year round -- so retaining daylight saving while moving British time in line with countries such as Germany and France. Such a measure could also cut deaths in road accidents, Yeo said.

“If there was a transport disaster tomorrow in which 80 people were killed, there would be calls for a public inquiry to ensure it never happened again,” Yeo said. “But that is how many lives road safety experts say could saved by putting the clocks forward an hour.”

To contact the reporter on this story: Alex Morales in London

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