Clocks go back this weekend

People in Cyprus got an extra hour of sleep Sunday morning, as clocks fell back to winter time on Saturday after midnight marking the end of Daylight Saving Time.

On Sunday, 27 October 2019, clocks moved back one hour at 4am, at which moment early morning time shifted backwards to 3am. People typically set their clocks before going to bed Saturday night in order to wake up with the new time in the morning.

The Daylight Saving Time (DST) has been a tradition observed by many countries around the world and all EU member states. However, recent debate coupled with the advent of new technology and global business practices, has caused confusion and changing clocks twice a year has become more of a nuisance for opponents of the DST.

Those in favour of keeping the DST practice include many Cypriots who argue that the island’s economy stands to benefit from an extra hour during the summer. A non-binding online referendum by the European Commission to assess the EU summertime directive was launched last year in an attempt to evaluate whether or not the rules should be changed.

If a current legislation proposal backed by the European parliament becomes law, member states would need to choose by April 2020 to stick permanently either to summer time (daylight saving time) or winter time (standard time), a directive they would have to implement in 2021.