Spring forward as clocks move ahead one hour to Daylight Saving Time Sunday a.m.

A bill passed in the Ontario legislature last fall to end the twice-a-year changing of the clocks

Time to make the switch.

Ontario will shift to daylight saving time (DST) at 2 am. on Sunday as the clock appears to be ticking on standard time.

Time will tell if the province ends the twice-a-year changing of the clocks. The Time Amendment Act, which was tabled by Ottawa West-Nepean MPP Jeremy Roberts, passed third reading in the Ontario legislature last November.

However, the switch to permanent DST will only happen if both Quebec and New York State agree to do the same thing.

Roberts said one of the benefits of ending the twice-yearly change includes promoting more consumerism by giving residents more hours of daylight in the evening.

The shift would mean the earliest the sun would set in the Barrie-area would be just after 5:30 p.m. In the early days of winter, the sun would not rise until after 8:30 a.m.

The Yukon government moved to permanent DST last March after conducting a survey in which 93 per cent of respondents said they wanted the clocks to stay put year-round. As well, 70 per cent said they wanted to stick with DST.

British Columbia passed legislation in 2019 giving the province the power to stop seasonal time changes, but nothing will happen until several western U.S. states do the same thing. Washington State and Oregon legislators have approved a bill to scrap the annual time change. California voters approved the idea in 2018, but the proposal has been delayed in the state senate.

Any decision to make the switch would require the approval of the U.S. government.

Research shows that the disruption to the internal clock can cause increased rates of heart attacks, stroke, weight gain, anxiety and contribute to workplace injuries and car accidents.

The changing of the clocks is used by fire departments to remind people to check the batteries in their smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors.

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