It’s finally here! After months of self-imposed misery from hardly ever seeing the sun, tomorrow sees the welcome return of British Summer Time. We should finally scrap GMT and instead keep BST all year round.
The actual switching between BST and GMT is incredibly dangerous. For example, it’s really bad for our hearts with one study revealing that on the Monday after the switch, the risk of suffering a heart attack increases by 24 per cent. Other studies – including this one from 2008 and this one from 2012 – show that this increased risk persists into the following week.
It also increases the risk of having a stroke. This is true for everyone, but it’s even worse if you’re already vulnerable. For example, it is 20 per cent more likely for those over the age of 65 and the risk is even higher for people who are suffering from cancer.
The danger doesn’t stop there. It makes road traffic incidents more likely leading to more people dying. It also makes being in the office even riskier as you’re more likely to find yourself the victim of a workplace accident.
Even if you don’t find yourself rushed to A&E, your work might still suffer as a result of the switch. This is because on the Monday after the change you are more likely to do unproductive things on your computer or phone such as doomscroll on Twitter or read miserable blogs about the dire state of the UK economy. This might be good for my engagement rates/ego but not for productivity. In fact, the economic damage doesn’t stop there as there is evidence to suggest that it actually has a negative impact on the stock market.
If you’re following so far then you’ll hopefully see that I’ve made a good case for ending the switch. However, the likes of Peter Hitchens could argue that this simply makes the case for keeping GMT all year. Mr HItchens is wrong.
This is because there would be numerous benefits for the country if we kept BST all year instead, and not just an end to the many awful consequences of switching from GMT to BST every year.
For example, it could have further benefits for our health. It could make us much more active and see more people get off their sofa and go for a run or play football rather than being locked in their flat, writing blogs. This would also obviously be much better for our mental health as well.
On a related note, it would make the roads much safer as well. An argument often used by proponents of sticking with GMT is that the mornings would be darker in the morning under BST. While this is true, we know that actually most fatal road traffic incidents occur in the evening and at night.
Keeping BST all year could also lead to a welcome decrease in crime and other forms of anti-social behaviour. Violent crime rates are higher in the UK in the evenings and at night as burglars, muggers, and rapists prefer to operate under the cover of darkness. In the US, for example, one study showed that crime rates dropped when the clocks went forward.
Finally, sticking with BST could bring economic benefits. During darker evenings it’s tempting to rush home after work, grab something to eat, and shelter from the horrors of the outside world. By contrast, lighter evenings make it far more tempting to stay out longer socialising with friends in pubs, cafes, and restaurants. This would be a real boost for the beleaguered hospitality industry. As an aside, it's important to point out that this is sadly more difficult in London due to the actions of NIMBYs in regions such as Soho as they have scrapped pedestrianisation and make everything close by 10pm.
On a related note, it could even help to boost international trade. This is because there is evidence to suggest that time differences really do matter when it comes to trade. It obviously won’t be the most important factor, but being closer in time to our most important trading partner could help to increase trade between the UK and the EU.
What about Scotland? I personally believe that the concerns often raised that it would increase risks for children north of the border are overblown as they would gain more hours of daylight in the evenings which would keep them safer and give them more time to play with their friends. Moreover, lighter mornings are only beneficial for them during term time for the most part. Of course we want to do everything we can to keep children safe which is why we need to make sure that streets and roads are much safer and that children have safer routes to school. Alternatively, the government should just make this a devolved issue and let Scotland set its own time zone if it wishes.
As for the likes of Mr Hitchens? Well, they may prefer to wallow in darkness but we shouldn’t let them make the rest of our lives a misery by being able to dictate public policy.
Let’s scrap GMT and keep BST all year. We’ll all be much happier, healthier, safer, and richer.