If the weather will be very cold this weekend, we will still have to switch to summer time this weekend. Yes, like every year for 45 years, we will have to set the clocks forward one hour on the night of March 28 to 29. The result is an hour of lost sleep that we will recover on October 25 when winter time changes. Or rather “standard time”, according to the Federal Institute of Metrology (METAS), in charge of official Swiss time.
In Switzerland, the time change was introduced in 1981 to follow in the footsteps of many European countries. The idea was that the extra hour of evening sunlight in spring meant less artificial light was needed and therefore less electricity. The Swiss first rejected summer time at the ballot box in 1978. But three years later, they ended up following the Federal Council, which noted that uniform regulations would facilitate the functioning of the European internal market.
Controversial time change
Since then, summer time has been increasingly contested, because the promised energy savings have never really been proven. In a poll carried out in the EU, 80% of those questioned even said they were in favor of its removal. Especially since many people complain of “minijetlag” after each time change, in the form of fatigue and irritability, or even worse.
What do you think about the switch to summer time?
In Switzerland too, there are more and more dissatisfied people. In 2020, an initiative from the SVP attempted to abolish summer time. She failed to collect the necessary 100,000 signatures. But Switzerland is not going to change its practices until the EU changes its own.
As a reminder, the EU had decided to abolish summer time in 2021 at the latest. The problem is that for this change to take place, all Member States must be on the same wavelength to choose whether summer time or standard time will be European standard time. Given their very different interests, no agreement was reached. And since then, successive crises and wars around the world have put this question aside.
What sleep specialists advise
To better navigate summer time, specialists recommend moving waking up and going to bed 10 to 15 minutes earlier each day, a few days before the official changeover. In short, get up and go to bed a little earlier than usual every day. Additionally, it is recommended to make the most of sunlight in the morning, avoid screens in the evening, and maintain regular, light meal times to help your body clock adapt.
Christine Talos (cht) has been a journalist in the Switzerland/Regions section since 2011. Her area of expertise is Swiss politics.
