Until this summer Western Australia and Queensland were the only states not to have daylight saving. Despite the concept being defeated previously at referenda, the WA Parliament voted last year for a three-year trial to be followed by another referendum.
I was initially ambivalent about daylight saving. In Victoria I wasn’t a great advocate for it, but nor was I bothered by it.
The issue we have as a family is that our young children go to bed at 8pm. They have trouble going to sleep at that time during daylight saving because it’s light when they go to bed.
My experience with daylight saving in Kalgoorlie has been negative beyond that one problem.
With the temperatures we’ve been experiencing this week in the 40s, it just doesn’t cool down to enjoy the evenings. In fact you’re hoping the sun will go down sooner so that it will become cooler.
Young Michael had soccer training this afternoon at 5pm, which without daylight saving would have been in the twilight. As it was, many of the boys, who were taking part in a high-performance program, suffered heat stress and had to leave the field.
If he hadn’t been at soccer he would have been delivering papers (the Goldfields Express). Without daylight saving I would have asked him to wait until 6pm when the sun was setting. I couldn’t ask him to wait until the daylight savings equivalent of 7pm because that’s his bath time, homework time, etc.
Perth readers might think these are trivial reasons to oppose daylight saving. They might say the greater good is better served by extending the clock one hour.
That’s twaddle. The main argument for daylight saving is a so-called lifestyle benefit. Clearly it isn’t a universal benefit for people living in inland regional areas.
And unless it is a benefit to the majority of people it should be scrapped. The only way to test if the majority are happy with it is through another referendum. Bring it on.
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Twitter: mgorey
says:
The longer daylight savings goes the more I’m against it. The weather thankfully isn’t as hot now, but it’s dark until 6.30am and that’s extending every day.
The Kalgoorlie Miner received a great letter from Federal Liberal MP Barry Haase this week outlining the case against daylight saving. It was the editorial I’ve been planning to write!
Given the CCC issue though we’re flooded with letters and it probably won’t appear until next week. I’ll reprint extracts here after it’s been published.
I am strongly against daylight saving for WA. I have several main reasons why I don’t like it.
But most of all my main problem with daylight saving is the HEAVY HANDED WAY THAT IT IS BEING TRIALED. EVERYONE’S PERSONAL REASONS AS TO WHY THEY DON’T LIKE DLS IS NOT THE ISSUE. THE ISSUE IS THAT THE PEOPLE OF WA HAVE NOT BEEN TREATED WITH DUE RESPECT. WE ARE NOT SO STUPID AS TO NEED 3 TRIALS BEFORE MAKING UP OUR MIND. WE SHOULD HAVE EVEN BEEN GIVEN A CHOICE ABOUT TRIALING DLS. I AM REALLY SURPRISED AT THE WAY THE GOVT HAS FORCED DLS ON A LARGELY UNWILLING WA POPULATION. I DIDN’T THINK THAT’S HOW THINGS WORKED IN A DEMOCRACY. I AM VERY DISGUSTED WITH HOW THE PROCESS HAS GONE SO FAR.
i BELIEVE THAT THE VAST MAJORITY OF WA DON’T WANT DLS AND I HOPE THEREFORE WE WILL FIND A WAY TO STRONGLY STAND AGAINST IT. I AM CONSIDERING FINDING A WAY TO BOYCOTT DLS NEXT YEAR.
In respons to Kim, I find that you are incorrect in stating that the “Govt has FORCED DLS ON A LARGELY UNWILLING WA POPULATION” and further urge you to consider the current polls in relation to the comments made It appears to me to be relatively even.
In general I think that many of the environmental arguments are the flavour of the day (as opposed to yester-year with fading curtains, thank god you have realised how silly this argument was and have moved on, though unfortunately a little short sighted.
Please tell me that we are not pinning our hopes on a No DLS outcome as a result of using more fossil fuels: please tell me that you dont envisage that we will keep increasing our use of these fuels the way we have in the last 50 years, and see ourselves as a little more forward thinking from here on in.
Get your kids rooms better curtains: I think ‘detriment’ is a very strong word to use when it concerns how 1 hour will impact on ones life. Please look at the statistics of other countries and the rest of our own country to see how ‘detrimental’ it has been there. I think as a society here in the West, we have far greater issues to consider bourne out of things other than due to DLS
Twitter: mgorey
says:
There was a story today that Labor will allow a free vote for MPs in caucus on bringing forward the referendum. That suggests they’re softening in response to public pressure.
NB: My March 23 post is a better place to leave comments: http://gorey.com.au/archives/1704
Thanks. That’s encouraging to know. I just ask that they use right processes, not whatever means they can to push their own agenda.
hey im mikaela,
im doing a debate at school about daylight savings can some one plz tell me the negative situation for daylght savings!
thankyou heaps guys
miky
Reasons to dislike daylight saving:
WA summer afternoons are often long and hot. If we don’t get a sea breeze – and often we don’t, in Jan and Feb – it won’t cool off enough to sleep until midnight, real time. That’s 1 am DLS, and many people have to be up five or so hours later. They’ll really feel the loss of that coolest hour to sleep, the third day into a heat wave.
Children under 10 need to be in bed by 8.30 or so. It’s still light then on DLS. You can’t reset a child’s body clock like a watch. They go by sun time – so they, too, will lose sleep.
I’ll be coming home at 5 pm – crawling up the freeway. That’s really 4 pm. In Perth, that’s often the hottest part of a summer day, and I can tell you now that having a game of tennis or going to the beach will be the last thing on my mind. Of course I’ll run the aircon, but burning the extra petrol is not a good thing, in several ways. And if you’re on a bus, good luck to you. You’ll need it.
Energy WA says we use more power in the heat, because of aircon. 82% of WA homes now have it – but aircon is less efficient for small than for large buildings, so if we’re coming home an hour earlier by the sun, we’ll use more power. Again, not a good thing. The electricity grid barely copes, anyway. It has failed twice in two years. Do we want to increase the load on it? I don’t think so.
And then there’s solar-caused skin cancer. We already have the world’s highest rate. What effects will more time in the sun have? Maybe we’ll be less fat, but more likely to have a melanoma. Me, I’d rather be fat.
So no to daylight saving.
daylight savings sucks so much
hate it
Can someone please tell me the positives of DLS. I need the imformation for a school essay, please reply as soon as possible.
Thanks
Taylor
I could not agree more. Twaddle is quite correct. I think if one is living in the East Coast when the sun is up really early, it may be beneficial to have the extra \normal time\ hour, but with the sun already coming up later, I find the times ridiculous (and I live in Perth). The sun already goes down late, what exactly is the problem, why do we need an extra hour? All that happens is that we eat later, go to bed later, can’t get up in the morning and put on extra weight while all the unprocessed food in our stomach’s turns to fat! I really dislike daylighht savings time and hope that it is voted against. Also, governments should not be allowed to implement things like this against people’s will. Glad we got rid of the labour government then!
Death to daylight saving! It has been inflicted upon us repeatedly to satisfy the screen-jockeys who deal with Eastern States. The entire State has been dragged along because they are too shiftless and self-serving to find another way to deal with the 3-hour lag during Summer.
Here’s an interesting little datum: The meridian used to determine Eastern time runs close to or through Sydney. The one used for Western time is nearer to Kalgoorlie than to Perth. Most people in WA are therefore on a permanent 20 minutes’ advance on solar time anyway. The sun doesn’t reach its zenith at Perth until about twenty minutes after “noon”.
In the past 35 years we’ve had four trials of daylight saving and two plebiscites. Politicians just don’t seem to understand the word “no”.
To answer the questions relating to school projects.
POLITICAL.
Most importantly the matter, being very controversial, was not discussed in parliament breaching the principals of democracy and thus giving cause for concern that the politicians, on both sides of parliament, have little respect for the communities wishes. The community had already rejected DLS three times since 1974. For those who argue they haven’t had a vote need to remember you will never have a vote again thus they are denying, on that principal, the next generation the right to say no. Just ask anyone under 50 years old from the east coast if they have ever had a say, then there are those states that never had a say.
GENERAL:
Approximately 10% of Perth residence do not have air conditioning, thus many children and families (including the elderly) suffer the following issues: Children are attempting to go to sleep whilst a) the sun is still up b) their homes are still hot from the heat of the day. Next, many people undertake their activities in the cool of the morning. With DLS this lifestyle choice is either denied (for those who must go to work) and limited for others who have other responsibilities by the clock. Trades people in general are against, some argue the 1 hour in the cooler morning increases their productivity because the law does not allow them to start making a noise before 7.30am. Others argue they are required to be on their way to work in the dark or risk being caught in traffic. Some people argue the change of routine affects their body clock and thus are unable to establish sleep patterns. Restaurants argue they are loosing customers because it is too late to eat out at 9 pm and too hot any earlier and many business have struggled as a result. Tourists complain that most things close at 5.30 and they then have to cope with the heat with limited activity between 5.30 and 9pm.
HEALTH:
Sleep deprivation caused by change of sleep patterns can have serious consequences to the health of those affected by it. Children are coming home from school at the peak heat period of the day. Sporting events, training and many other activities are affected by DLS and to the detriment of those participating.
ENVIRONMENT:
Evidence is now being established that DLS increases electricity use thus green house gases.
ECONOMICAL: The business sector claims that business is loosing money, the actual reason why we are voting again, however no details have been presented, research data not available and organizations that have “put their hand up” to supporting DLS do not present their qualified arguments. It is argued by accountants that the real losses are not caused by DLS but centralization of banking and suppliers on the east coast. Hope that helps
Twitter: mgorey
says:
Daylight saving in Mount Gambier (SA) is no problem, except it goes too long.
If you like to have a morning walk (as I do) it’s dark now until 6.20am. That will get later until daylight saving ends.
There is no real benefit in late February or March in having extra twilight at the end of the day.
In my view, daylight saving should only run from December 1 to January 31 in the eastern states and not at all in WA.
Several recent studies by internationally recognized universities have confirmed what has been expressed anecdotely by those adversly affected by DLS. Namely, that disruption to sleep patterns(Circadian Rythm) or body clock, can have serious health effects over a total population. Other issues centre on the morning as a time of waking, and preparing for the day ahead. Breakfast, packed lunches and even personal hygene are compromised when an hour is suddenly removed at the beginning of summer. What is very disturbing to me is the code of silence adopted almost universally by all members of parliment. This is no way for a government to behave.
Apart from all the biological and practical reasons that the DLS would interrupt our daily activities in summer. Average household also has 10 and plus clocks to put forward and backward twice a year. Imagining the hassle and the waste of time for changing the 10 plus clocks around the house 2 times a year for the rest of our life – It’s simply unnecessary!
If those people who prefer catching up with their eastern states colleagues in doing business, why don’t they mentally bring one hour forward and get up early in summer, instead of forcing their rigid working hours on the rest of us, unnecessarily. That would also mitigate the traffic jams twice a day and thus save the environment too!
And at last, but not the least, you would not get extra sun light by putting the clock one hour forward. DON’T fool yourself anymore!!
i actually like daylight saving’s i think it is a great idea, as i can go for a surf after school and it will decrese your elecrity bill and decreaSE THE CRIME RATE. and anit it nice going for a swim at cott in the evening
Those of you who oppose daylight savings are actually starting to bore me. The excuses that are rendered sometimes are also ridiculous (curtains fading, increased anti social behaviour) … what academic research have these ignorant assumptions been based on?
Furthermore, aren’t we forgetting our obesity problem? If it means that the working population can squeeze one hour of potential exercise in after work, I say “HEAR HEAR”.