Responding to a parliamentary question from Mars di Bartolomeo (LSAP), DP prime minister Xavier Bettel wrote that Luxembourg would “consult firstly with its neighbours, its Benelux partners and finally on a level with other EU member states to reach a common position on the subject.”

“In all cases, we must avoid citizens and economic actors being faced with a different legal time, besides the current time zones, in the worst case within the greater region, if not the single market,” he wrote.

In an online consultation launched by France’s National Assembly’s European Affairs committee on 6 March, 2.1 million respondent supported scrapping the system whereby clocks would be changed twice yearly to ensure maximum daylight in the morning. According to politico, 59% favoured switching to permanent summer time while 37% preferred winter hours. Portugal, Cyprus, Poland and Hungary have expressed a similar view. Finland, Denmark and the Netherlands have said they want to keep the winter time.

On 26 March, the European Parliament voted to scrap changing the clocks by 2021, leaving national governments to now give their assent. They can choose whether to remain on “permanent summer” or “permanent winter”. Countries have until next year to decide.

Daylight saving time was harmonised throughout the EU in 1980 to support the European single market. The current directive requires EU countries to switch to summer time on the last Sunday of March and back to standard time on the last Sunday of October.