Proposals in the Westminster Parliament to
change daylight saving time, which would have plunged Scotland into
darkness until later in the morning, have failed.
A Private Member’s Bill, promoted by
Conservative MPs from the south and south-east of England was defeated in the House
of Commons on Friday. Banff & Buchan
MP Dr Eilidh Whiteford took
part in the debate and voted against the Bill.
Speaking
in the House of Commons, Dr Whiteford said:
“Ultimately, it is a
quality of life issue. One thing that struck me after the last debate on the
Bill was that a huge number of people from England, mostly older people who
remember the last trial, got in touch with me by letter, phone or e-mail. They
all said the same thing: “This was a disaster when they did it in the ’70s.”
They found it miserable getting up, going to work and delivering things in the
dark. People who remember it did not like it.
“That has to be our
arbiter: is this going to be helpful for our quality of life? I know that it is
going to impact more on my part of the world than some other parts of these
islands. For the sake of our health and well-being, we need to think carefully
before messing around with something that might not need to be changed.
Commenting afterwards, Dr Whiteford said:
“MPs from the south attempted to push through this
Bill, and with it the prospect of darker mornings for everyone north of Manchester, with little
regard to the impact these changes would have on the quality of life for people
in the north.
“I had real concerns that no account was being
taken of our climate and the fact that the coldest hours are before dawn. While
there’s not much evidence that daylight is a decisive factor in road safety, we
know that weather conditions play a very significant role. Minimising the time
drivers and pedestrians spend on icy roads and pavements has to be a key
consideration.
“The evidence put forward supporting this change
was entirely untested, and the proponents of this Bill have ignored the sound
reasons why this change was abandoned after being trialled in the 1970s, and
more recently by other European neighbours who found that the shift had a
damaging effect on safety, health, energy consumption and commerce.
“This change would be acutely felt in Scotland,
raising real safety and quality of life concerns. I’m therefore pleased that the Bill has
fallen and will not be progressing any further.”