Europe has switched to daylight saving time
29 March 10:12
The European Union, the United Kingdom, Ukraine, Moldova, and most other European countries switched to daylight saving time on the night of Sunday, March 29. In Ukraine’s time zone, the clocks were set forward one hour at 3:00 a.m., according to "Komersant Ukrainian".
The switch to standard time in Ukraine and EU countries in 2026 is expected to take place on the night of Sunday, October 25.
In Europe, only Iceland, Turkey, Belarus, and Russia do not adjust their clocks for winter and summer time. Accordingly, during the summer, the time difference between the EU and, for example, Moscow or Istanbul is one hour, and during the winter, it is two hours.
Germans Do Not Support Seasonal Clock Changes
According to a survey conducted by the Forsa Institute for Public Opinion Research in March 2025, 74 percent of Germans would like to abolish the switch from daylight saving time to standard time and back. 23 percent of respondents acknowledged that such changes are beneficial.
At the same time, 30 percent of respondents complained of fatigue, sleep disturbances, low mood, and irritability after the clocks were set to daylight saving time. This aligns with the view common among chronobiologists that daylight saving time is “artificial” and disrupts circadian rhythms, which, among other things, affect human hormone levels and metabolism.
The European Parliament approved the abolition of seasonal time changes in 2019
Since 1996, the EU has had a single rule for switching to daylight saving time and standard time: clocks are set forward one hour on the last Sunday in March and back one hour on the last Sunday in October.
In 2018, the European Parliament proposed abolishing the practice of changing clocks to daylight saving time (one hour forward) and standard time (one hour back) and asked the European Commission to provide a “reasoned assessment” of this initiative. The European Commission, in turn, conducted a survey, according to which 84 percent of 4.6 million respondents voted to abolish the switch to winter and summer time.
Despite the reform being approved by both EU bodies, it has not been implemented. Governments of several EU countries oppose this. One reason is that countries are demanding the European Commission conduct a detailed assessment of the consequences of abandoning the clock change, which the EU’s governing body refuses to do. Another reason cited is the potential fragmentation of time zones, as each country would have the right to choose which seasonal time to remain on.
