A top energy expert has claimed that Brits could save hundreds of pounds on their energy bills if clocks do not go back at the end of October.
Professor Aoife Foley, who teaches at Queen's University Belfast, says households could save more than £400 a year amid the ongoing 'energy war'.
Professor Foley said she calculated that households could save on their energy bills if the October clock change was scrapped.
A specialist in clean energy research, she said that this “administrative solution would dramatically reduce demand during peak times” as average yearly bills rise to about £2,500.
Despite the European Union looking to scrap Daylight Savings Time for years, many countries still put the clock forward and back twice a year.
However, Foley said there are definite savings to be made by getting rid of this system.
She said: “By simply foregoing the winter Daylight Savings Time (DST) in October, we save energy because it is brighter in the evening during winter.
"So we reduce commercial and residential electrical demand as people leave work earlier, and go home earlier, meaning less lighting and heating is needed.
“We are no longer in an energy crisis in Europe, but an energy war.
"And, dependent on weather conditions this winter, it is very likely we may need to start rationing energy very seriously to avoid bigger energy issues in December and January when gas reserves start to run low.
“There is no doubt that by foregoing the daylight savings in winter we would save a lot of energy, reduce our bills and carbon emissions during this energy war, and especially during a cost of living crisis.”
Removing the October clock change, when they go backwards by one hour, would flatten the evening peak curves on energy demand by up to 10 per cent, Foley said, if commercial demand is included.
Households could save £1.20 a day if clocks are not pushed back at the end of October.
This amounts to £400 a year off their energy bills.
Professor Foley’s calculations do not include gas savings or electricity and gas in the commercial or industrial sector, but she said that there would be “even more significant energy, cost and emissions reductions for hard-strapped businesses and the public” if they were.
It comes as British households are facing unprecedented £100-a-week energy bills in the coming weeks as prices surge by 27 per cent.
The price cap rose from £1,971 to £2,500 on October 1, meaning the average weekly gas and electric bill will shoot up from the £75 it would have cost as boilers get more usage.
But even those estimates are conservative, based on no more than three people in a three-bed home.
The Government's £400 Energy Bills Support Scheme works out at a discount of £7 a week over the course of 12 months.
It's expected that £2.8 billion will be spent across the winter in the UK on energy bills, nearly double that of last year.
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