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HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
Although it has always been self-evident, medical science has now confirmed that daylight is better for our bodies than the dark and much better than artificial light. Extended daylight in the evenings will allow many of those of us who want to take part in sporting activities, or other open-air leisure activities to do so in daylight, which is far healthier than doing it in the dark under artificial lights.
There were two great objections made five years ago when there was a big argument about the abolishing of summertime (because I must emphasize that Hong Kong, in fact, had summertime for well over forty years). Argument number one was that we must be on the same time with China, that politically it was just not acceptable for Hong Kong and Canton to be in different time zones. Now, of course, last year and this year China introduced summertime and Hong Kong and Canton during summer are therefore in different time zones. In fact, and there are quite a lot of them now, those Hong Kong people who work in Shenzhen in summer have to set their watches every time they cross the Border in the morning and come back in the evening. So one must ask why, if politically being in a different time zone from China was not acceptable five years ago, why is it suddenly acceptable now?
The other great objection was from those people who do Tai Chi early in the morning or go for early morning walks. Now, personally, I enjoy going, Sam has already mentioned that, for early morning walks when I start out in the dark and see the dawn and then the sun come up, and if you take out the Almanac and look at times of sunrise and sunsets, assuming we introduce summertime in the middle of April, on the 15 April 1988 the sun will rise at 06.03 hrs and set at 18.43 hrs. If we had summertime, the sun would rise at 7.03 hrs and set at 19.45 hrs. But remember, officially we also have half an hour of twilight, unofficially, of course, the dawn can be seen about an hour before sunrise. So, really, our morning walkers would be having a reasonable amount of daylight by 6.30 a.m. if there were summertime on the 15 April. By the time we get to the middle of June, on the 15 June the sun rises at 05.39 hrs and sets at 19.08 hrs, and if we had summertime the sun would rise at 06.39 hrs and set at 20.08 hrs, which would mean that we would have daylight for the morning walkers by 05.45 hrs, which should be early enough for everybody, and light for sport and recreation until 20.30 hrs, and if we go back on to normal time by the middle of September with sunrise on the 15 September at 06.10 hrs and sunset at 18.27 hrs, i.e. on summertime at 07.10 hrs and 19.27 hrs, we would still have daylight even as late as September well before seven in the morning. I really don't think our elderly early morning walkers can complain about that.
One last point: Countries which have had summertime for some time have found a quite significant reduction in road accidents. This is obviously due to the fact that more people are on the road between 7 and 8 at night than between 6 and 7 in the morning, and accidents are more likely to happen in the dark than during daylight.
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In my view, it is significant not only that all advanced industrial countries north of the Tropic of Cancer have summertime (the whole of the United States, the whole of Canada, all of Europe), but that both Soviet Russia and the People's Republic of China introduced summertime two and three years ago, respectively, because they recognized the economic advantages.
As far as I am concerned, the arguments which I have marshalled are conclusive. Hong Kong really must now reintroduce summertime and preferably coordinate with the People's Republic of China to introduce summertime on the same day and for the same length of time China has summertime.
Mr. Chairman, I support the Motion.
MR. JOSEPH Y. S. CHAN said (in Cantonese): Mr. Chairman, I agree with Mr. SULKE'S and Mr. WONG's proposal for summertime. From the Urban Council point of view, it is a good thing. However, we must consider the experience of schools with summertime. Past experience has shown that the school children tended to be late and they had to take very long to suit the new time i.e. the summertime. Many youngsters after work in the evening do not want to walk with their girlfriends in bright daylight and they wish to have a dim place to go. Therefore, apart from recreational facilities, I think we should also consider the need of others. But I would support the motion.
The question was put.
The motion was carried unanimously.
ADJOURNMENT 3.50 p.m.
CHAIRMAN (in English): Ladies and Gentlemen, this concludes the business of today's meeting. This is the last meeting of 1987, I would like to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. The Council stands adjourned until Tuesday, 12 January 1988 at 2.30 p.m.
PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY THE GOVERNMENT PRINTER, HONG KONG
Page 117 of 185
Page 117 of 185
224
HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
Although it has always been self-evident, medical science has now confirmed that daylight is better for our bodies than the dark and much better than artificial light. Extended daylight in the evenings will allow many of those of us who want to take part in sporting activities, or other open air leisure activities to do so in daylight, which is far healthier than doing it in the dark under artificial lights.
There were two great objections made five years ago when there was a big argument about the abolishing of summertime (because I must emphasize that Hong Kong, in fact, had summertime for well over forty years). Argument number one was that we must be on the same time with China, that politically it was just not acceptable for Hong Kong and Canton to be in different time zones. Now, of course, last year and this year China introduced summertime and Hong Kong and Canton during summer are therefore in different time zones. In fact, and there are quite a lot of them now, those Hong Kong people who work in Shenzhen in summer have to set their watches every time they cross the Border in the morning and come back in the evening. So one must ask why, if politically being in a different time zone from China was not acceptable five years ago, why is it suddently acceptable now??
The other great objection was from those people who do Tai Chi early in the morning or go for early morning walks. Now, personally, I enjoy going, Sam has already mentioned that, for early morning walks when I start out in the dark and see the dawn and then the sun come up, and if you take out the Almanac and look at times of sunrise and sunsets, assuming we introduce summertime in the middle of April, on the 15 April 1988 the sun will rise at 06.03 hrs and set at 18.43 hrs. If we had summertime, the sun would rise at 7.03 hrs and set at 19.45 hrs. But remember, officially we also have half an hour of twilight, unofficially, of course, the dawn can be seen about an hour before sunrise. So, really, our morning walkers would be having a reasonable amount of daylight by 6.30 a.m. if there were summertime on the 15 April. By the time we get to the middle of June, on the 15 June the sun rises at 05.39 hrs and sets at 19.08 hrs, and if we had summertime the sun would rise at 06.39 hrs and set at 20.08 hrs, which would mean that we would have daylight for the morning walkers by 05.45 hrs, which should be early enough for everybody, and light for sport and recreation until 20.30 hrs, and if we go back on to normal time by the middle of September with sunrise on the 15 September at 06.10 hrs and sunset at 18.27 hrs, i.e. on summertime at 07.10 hrs and 19.27 hrs, we would still have daylight even as late as September well before seven in the morning. I really don't think our elderly early morning walkers can complain about that.
One last point: Countries which have had summertime for some time have found a quite significant reduction in road accidents. This is obviously due to the fact that more people are on the road between 7 and 8 at night than between 6 and 7 in the morning, and accidents are more likely to happen in the dark than during daylight.
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225
In my view it is significant not only that all advanced industrial countries north of the Tropic of Cancer have summertime (the whole of the United States, the whole of Canada, all of Europe), but that both Soviet Russia and the People's Republic of China introduced summertime two and three years ago, respectively, because they recognized the economic advantages.
As far as I am concerned the arguments which I have marshalled are conclusive. Hong Kong really must now reintroduce summertime and pre- fereably coordinate with the People's Republic of China to introduce summertime on the same day and for the same length of time China has summertime.
Mr. Chairman, I support the Motion.
MR. JOSEPH Y. S. CHAN said (in Cantonese):-Mr. Chairman, I agree with Mr. SULKE'S and Mr. WONG's proposal for summertime. From the Urban Council point of view, it is a good thing. However, we must consider the experience of schools with summertime. Past experience has shown that the school children tended to be late and they had to take very long to suit the new time i.e. the summertime. Many youngsters after work in the evening do not want to walk with their girlfriends in bright daylight and they wish to have a dim place to go. Therefore apart from recreational facilities, I think we should also consider the need of others. But I would support the motion.
The question was put.
The motion was carried unanimously.
ADJOURNMENT 3.50 p.m.
CHAIRMAN (in English):-Ladies and Gentlemen, this concludes the business of today's meeting. This is the last meeting of 1987, I would like to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. The Council stands adjourned until Tuesday, 12 January 1988 at 2.30 p.m.
PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY THE GOVERNMENT PRINTER, HONG KONG
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