Why was summer time introduced?
Summer time was introduced to save energy, as it provides more daylight hours during the day when people are awake.
EU standard for winter/summer time
All EU member countries need to move their clocks forward one hour on the last weekend in March and back one hour on the last weekend in October. This became a standard in 1996, decided by the EU Commission. However the same EU commision voted to discontinue daylight saving time in 2019. [1]. The Swedish government have not yet decided on skipping the daylight saving time.
Do all countries have winter and summer time?
Around 70 countries have both summer and winter time. Almost all countries in Europe and North America switch, but not all countries switch their clocks on the same date as in the EU.
Which major countries have permanent winter time/standard time?
- China
- India
- Russia
- Iceland
- Argentina
- Peru
- Japan
- South Korea
Time change saves money
In Italy, for example, figures have shown that switching to summer time results in significant energy savings. This translates to annual savings of around 94.5 million euros. [2]
Don't forget to switch to winter time on Sunday!
