This weekend, Europe will set its clocks back an hour. Like every last Sunday in October, the continent will switch back to winter time. But this time, the seasonal ritual could well be the last. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has reignited the debate, calling the system « outdated » and « harmful » to health. « Changing the time twice a year no longer makes sense. It does little to save energy and has a negative impact on people’s lives, » he wrote on X.
Cambiar la hora dos veces al año ya no tiene sentido.
Apenas ayuda a ahorrar energía y tiene un impacto negativo en la salud y en la vida de la gente.
Por eso, hoy el Gobierno de España propondrá a la UE acabar con el cambio de hora estacional en el Consejo de Energía y… pic.twitter.com/LA9UM0HVfG
– Pedro Sánchez (@sanchezcastejon) October 20, 2025
In an attempt to remedy the situation, the Spanish government officially proposed to abolish the seasonal time change within the European Union at the Energy Council held in Luxembourg on October 20. This initiative aims to put an end to the practice of time change from 2026.
According to Sánchez, the move comes in response to public demand and scientific concerns about the negative health effects of time change. Countries such as Finland and Poland, as well as the European Commission, have lent their support to this proposal.
Europeans for abolition
The six-monthly changeover to summer or winter time was introduced in Europe in the 1970s, during the oil crisis, to save energy. But with the widespread use of low-energy lighting, these gains have become marginal.
In 2018, the European Commission had already proposed to put an end to this system, following a vast public consultation that mobilized nearly 4 million participants: 84% of them were in favor of abolishing the time change. The European Parliament gave the go-ahead, but in the absence of agreement between the 27 member states, the measure was never implemented.
« The time has come to finally put a stop to the time change in Europe »
On October 24, on the occasion of the switch to winter time, the debate on time change resumed in the Strasbourg hemicycle. The European Commissioner for Transport, Apostolos Tzitzikostas, quoted by AFP, insisted: « The time has come to finally put a stop to the time change ». According to him, this system « concerns each and every one of us, disturbs the majority of citizens and has negative effects », while no longer producing real energy savings. To support this approach, the European Commission has launched a new study to assess the impact of abolition more precisely.
While Europe is discussing abandoning the time change, Morocco has already switched to permanent daylight saving time since 2018. The Kingdom lives on GMT 1 all year round, with the exception of the month of Ramadan, when the time temporarily reverts to GMT. This decision, taken by decree, was officially justified as a means of « reducing energy consumption » and« harmonizing economic exchanges with Europe. »
Morocco in line with its European partners
At the time, Mohamed Ben Abdelkader, Minister Delegate in charge of Administrative Reform and the Civil Service, explained: « We carried out a study on the results of five years’ application of daylight saving time, taking into account for the first time several criteria, such as the impact on health, but also economic and social criteria. The study concluded that the time change does indeed cause disruption for citizens. We also carried out an opinion poll among a large sample, and over 65% expressed their dissatisfaction and said they preferred stability », the Minister detailed at the time.
In his view, Morocco had two choices: to return to GMT or to remain on GMT 1. We studied both scenarios, then decided that in view of the economic advantages, it was better to be on GMT 1″, explained the Minister. He went on to explain that, in this case, it was no longer simply a question of daylight saving time, but of a change in the Kingdom’s time zone, aligned with France, Spain, Algeria and Tunisia.
The extra hour was intended not so much to save energy as to promote economic integration with the country’s traditional partners, particularly France and Spain.
To limit the effects on daily life, Mohamed Ben Abdelkader assured us that school and administration timetables would be adapted to the new time zone: « Through decrees, we will be moving towards greater flexibility in the entry and exit times of schoolchildren and civil servants ».
A small but necessary gain
Six years on, the Moroccan choice continues to provoke debate. While the overall energy benefit remains limited, it does represent a significant saving during peak consumption periods, analyzes energy expert Amin Bennouna, contacted by TelQuel. « The Greenwich meridian, which runs slightly east of Morocco, defines solar noon. On average, Morocco is therefore about half an hour behind this meridian, which puts the zenith at around 12:30 p.m. », he explains. With permanent GMT 1, the country is about 1.30 hours ahead of the sun. In concrete terms, this saves almost an hour and a half of lighting for personal and business premises in June, while public lighting remains linked to sunrise and sunset.
In practical terms, this measure « saves between 100 and 150 megawatts at the peak hour, around 9 p.m. – the equivalent of a unit from the Ouarzazate solar power plant or a gas turbine », as our contact underlines.
Over the year as a whole, these savings remain modest: around 0.5% of national electricity consumption. Nevertheless, they represent a gain of around a quarter of a point in energy independence, « which is not insignificant for a country that imports most of its fossil fuels », he adds.
While the choice of permanent GMT 1 offers certain advantages in terms of energy and the economy, it remains a subject of debate among the population. A study published on October 13 by Sunergia for L’Économiste reveals that only 28% of Moroccans are in favor of this timetable, compared with 43% who are opposed. Support is strongest among senior citizens and less affluent socio-professional categories, while young people, city dwellers and those in higher socio-professional categories are strongly opposed.
As for its impact on daily life, 40% of respondents felt that GMT 1 had a negative effect on their pace of life and well-being, compared with only 17% who perceived a positive impact. The remainder of respondents either don’t notice any difference or don’t know. This generational and social divide illustrates that, despite its benefits in terms of energy savings and economic integration, daylight saving time continues to divide Moroccans.
Written in French by Ghita Ismaili; Edited in English by AngloMedia Group.
