As autumn fades and winter will soon knock at the doors, the UK is set to turn back its clocks by an hour, marking the end of British Summer Time (BST) and the return to Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) at the close of this month.While this time shift has long been a tradition, a growing number of scientists and medical professionals are now pushing for an end to the biannual clock changes, arguing that it is “harming the nation’s sleep.”But why does the UK continue to change its clocks twice a year, and what impact does this practice have on health? Let’s take a closer look.
Turning back time
British Summer Time (BST), also known as Daylight Saving Time (DST), was first introduced with the Summer Time Act of 1916.
The idea was originally championed by William Willett, an Edwardian builder and the great-great-grandfather of Coldplay’s Chris Martin, says The Independent. Willett led a campaign called ‘The Waste of Daylight,’ proposing that the clocks should move forward in spring and back in winter.
Although Willett passed away a year before his idea became law, the government adopted his plan in 1916 during World War I, believing it would help conserve coal.
Since then, every year, the clocks are set back an hour at 2 am on the last Sunday of October (this year on October 27), marking the UK’s shift from BST to Greenwich Mean Time (GMT).
Content retrieved from: https://www.firstpost.com/explainers/why-doctors-are-calling-the-uk-to-abolish-its-yearly-clock-changing-system-13828797.html.
