Europe calling time on twice-a-year clock change

Time is running out on the twice-a-year tradition in Europe of "changing the clocks" after politicians in the European Parliament voted this week to scrap it during 2021.

The practice of moving the hands on clocks forward by one hour in the spring and back by an hour in the fall, on two specific days, became widely adopted in Europe in the 1980s and mandatory by 2001. The Europe-wide synchronized clock change ensured all European Union nations remained consistent with one another, something that was aimed at facilitating business dealings, holidaymaking, and, with the clock changes making the most of available daylight, energy saving.

Currently, the EU's 28 member nations switch to "summer time" on the last Sunday of March, and back to "winter time" on the last Sunday of October.