THE BREXIT deal passed by Boris Johnson's government could lead to Northern Ireland being in a different time zone from the rest of the UK for six months out of the year, experts have warned.
Last year, the European Parliament voted in favour of a proposal to do away with daylight savings time, which gives an extra hour of the day coming into the summer months.
But with Northern Ireland still attached to numerous EU laws in order to prevent a hard border on the island of Ireland, it is looking likely that if the proposal passed, the North would follow the new EU timekeeping schedule and therefore be an hour behind the rest of the UK for six months out of the year.
An EU internal market sub-committee reports entitled Clock changes: is it time for change? as reported by The Independent states:
“Were this proposal [to do away with daylight savings] to become EU law under its current single market legal basis, Northern Ireland may be obliged under the terms of the Withdrawal Agreement and the protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland to align with the EU and thus institute a time border with Great Britain.”
The report goes on to urge UK Ministers to tackle the issue and urged politicians not to stick their heads in the sand just "hoping that [the EU proposal] goes away".
Should the proposal pass, however, Northern Ireland would either have a different time zone to Great Britain-- which is across the sea-- or the Republic of Ireland, which is on the same island.
Baroness Donaghy, chair of the committee on the report, said the proposal could result in "leaving the island of Ireland with two time zones at different times of the year...causing difficulties for people and businesses in Northern Ireland".
