Liam Quaide (Cork East, Social Democrats)
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1498. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality if he will provide an update on his Department’s involvement in the inaugural Time and Sync Forum; his Department’s position on ending biannual clock changes, otherwise referred to as daylight saving time; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21143/25]

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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The National Standards Authority of Ireland (NSAI) is under the remit of the Department of Enterprise, Trade & Employment. I am informed by the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment that the NSAI hosted Ireland’s inaugural Time & Sync Forum, on 11th February 2025, at their National Metrology Laboratory offices in Dublin in conjunction with business partners.

The event was attended by leading authorities in timing and synchronisation from Ireland, the UK, and the European Commission to discuss key topics and policies relating to critical infrastructure on the island of Ireland.

NSAI’s National Metrology Laboratory (NML) maintains the reference measurement standards for Time & Frequency and contribute their atomic clock data to the International Bureau for Weights and Measures (BIPM) who maintain and calculate Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). NSAI’s NML maintain the internationally accepted representation of the second in Ireland.

Further information is also available at: NSAI holding Ireland’s first ever Time & Sync Forum | NSAI(www.nsai.ie/about/news/nsai-holding-irelands-first-ever-time-sync-forum/)

The matter of legal time sits with my Department. Since 2001, summer time arrangements in the EU have been governed by EU Directive 2000/84/EC, which sets out the obligation on all Member States to switch to summer time on the last Sunday of March and to switch back to their standard time (winter time) on the last Sunday of October.

Following a resolution of the European Parliament in 2018, the European Commission proposed a change to this arrangement, under which:

• The last mandatory change to summer time would take place on 28 March 2021, after which
• Member States who wish to remain on winter time would make one last seasonal clock change on 31 October 2021. This decision was to be notified to the Commission by 1 April 2020.
• Members States would remain free to choose their standard time, on the condition that they give 18 months’ notice to the Commission.