FDP to demand Germany end daylight saving time changes

Germany's Free Democrats (FDP), soon to be the junior coalition partner of Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives, want to end annual daylight saving changes in favour of keeping Europe on summer time for the entire year.

The FDP energy expert Gudrun Kopp told the Rheinische Post daily on Thursday that the switching clocks forward an hour in March and back again in October each year had no perceivable economic or environmental benefits yet caused unnecessary bureaucratic hassles.

"We want to start a new initiative that will end the reoccurring burden people face with the changes," said Kopp, adding research had shown there are more driving accidents and schoolchildren were less focused in class after switching the clocks.

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glad to see the party is hitting the ground running and attacking the pressing problems of the day, or at least the coming sunday.

amen! - this whole practice is LAME!

had to click the link to find out exactly what they were demanding to end
as it was shortened to

"FDP to demand Germany end ..."

for a brief moment I hoped it would say "solidaritätzuschlag" - more fool me

I for one agree fully with leaving the clocks alone. And further more I have yet to see any valid argument for clock changing! I mean let's face it..... The time is what the time is ok! So why fake it :-)

Apart from not wanting to pay income taxes per se, why did you hope it would say "FDP to demand Germany end Solidaritätzuschlag"?

I just can't get over how the FDP is taking ever good idea I've ever had and going public with it. It is really bizarre. I rant about this particular issue every year when the clocks switch and suddenly it's dark at 16:30.

I think I agree with them on every issue they stand for.

The change the FDP is proposing is to keep Central European Summer Time. This is the "fake" time. On Sunday morning we'll be readjusting our clocks and watches to Central European Time, which is the "original" time. Central European Summer Time was first used in Germany in 1980.

Summer time is however superior to normal time.

It still only offers 24 hours in a single day, so I can't see any substantive benefit. It will be good waking up to daylight next Monday morning.

British Double Summer Time (1941-45) is doubly superior, then.

- having slept an hour longer

It is better because it is light for more hours when most people are awake. One substantial benefit to this is that it saves a load of electricity because people are not lighting their houses for as long.

Indeed. I would actually put it forward another hour in summer and leave it on summer time in the winter. Probably only 10% of people are disadvantaged by it still being dark before 7:00. Pretty much 100% of people benefit from it being light still at 17:30 though.

All for doing it.. Go FDP..

I wonder if such a change would negativity increase energy usage; moreover, how it would impact technology (not made in the EU) sold in Germany. Seems like a bad idea overall. If they want to make my life easier they could start by making tax forms that I don't need to hire "Rainman" to crunch the numbers. Doing taxes in Germany makes me feel like my MBA could be better served for toilet paper.