The clock change debate and crime

With most police services warning that earlier darker nights (brought about by our regular clock change at this time of year) will lead to a spike in crime one has to ask what our government are doing about it. Not a lot at the moment it seems from the Wikipedia page on the subject. 

Here’s an excerpt on the Wikipedia page, but read the rest at the link below:

Campaigners, including the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) and environmental campaigners 10:10, have made recommendations that British Summer Time be maintained during the winter months, and that a "double summertime" be applied to the current British Summer Time period, putting the UK one hour ahead of GMT during winter, and two hours ahead during summer.

This proposal is referred to as "Single/Double Summer Time" (SDST), and would effectively mean the UK adopting the same time zone as European countries such as France, Germany, and mainland Spain (Central European Time and Central European Summer Time).

RoSPA suggests this would reduce the number of accidents over this period as a result of the lighter evenings. RoSPA have called for the 1968–71 trial to be repeated with modern evaluation methods.

While 10:10 generally agree with the safety benefits, their Lighter Later campaign focuses on the potential energy benefits of Single/Double Summer Time, arguing that the change could "save almost 500,000 tonnes of CO2 each year, equivalent to taking 185,000 cars off the road permanently".

These proposals are opposed by some farmers and other outdoor workers, and many residents of Scotland and Northern Ireland as it would mean that, in northern Britain and Northern Ireland, the winter sunrise would not occur until 10:00 or even later. However in March 2010 the National Farmers Union indicated that it was not against Single/Double Summer Time and is in fact relatively neutral, with many farmers expressing a preference for the change. Other opponents of daylight saving measures say that darker mornings, especially in Scotland, could have an impact on children going to school and people travelling to work.

Read the rest here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Summer_Time

Interestingly there is no specific mention of crime reduction benefits in the article, although this may have been revealed had the Daylight Saving Bill 2010–12, (a private member's bill by Conservative backbench MP Rebecca Harris to require government to conduct an analysis of the potential costs and benefits of advancing time by one hour) not been filibustered out of Parliament by opponents in January 2012.

Also why can’t Northern Ireland and Scotland keep their own time if that is their choosing? Maybe it’s a business thing!

Interesting read.

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