Clocks go back this weekend
The Minister for Justice and Equality, Charlie Flanagan has reminded the general public that 'summer time' will come to an end at 2am, Sunday, October 28th. At that point, winter time will commence and clocks and watches should be put back one hour to 1am Greenwich Mean Time.
Minister Flanagan took the opportunity of the clock change to announce the opening of a public consultation process on the future of the twice-yearly clock change. The consultation asks members of the public whether they are in favour of abandoning the current system and, if they are, whether they would prefer to stay constantly on 'summer time' or 'winter time'.
Minister Flanagan said: “The EU Commission has proposed abolishing clock changes. As this is an issue that effects everyone, it is very important that as many people as possible respond to this consultation and express their views so that the Government may take account of public opinion when considering this proposal by the EU. It is important to acknowledge that if the UK were to adopt a different position, this would present particular challenges for the island of Ireland. Any position adopted by Ireland will be informed by this important consideration.”
The consultation asks three important questions:
Further information regarding the consultation can be found on the Department of Justice and Equality’s website www.justice.ie. You can have your say on this issue by completing this online survey https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/Consultation_on_Seasonal_Clock_Changes or emailing timeconsultation@justice.ie. The closing date for submissions is Friday, November 30th.