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Most people in B.C., Alberta and Manitoba back ending the time change, Angus Reid poll finds

Most people in B.C., Alberta and Manitoba back ending the time change, Angus Reid poll finds

A Angus Reid Institute survey released this week found more than 70 per cent of respondents in B.C., Alberta and Manitoba support ending the twice-yearly clock change this fall.

The Story

B.C., Alberta and Manitoba have ended the semi-annual clock change and adopted permanent daylight saving time, and an Angus Reid Institute poll suggests residents in those provinces broadly approve of the switch.

The survey found that more than 70 per cent of respondents in the three provinces agreed it was the “right move” to opt out of changing their clocks this fall.

In B.C., only 18 per cent of people surveyed said they favoured switching back and forth, while slightly more than 30 per cent wanted earlier sunrises and 40 per cent preferred later sunsets.

In Alberta and Manitoba, 21 per cent of respondents preferred falling back and springing forward. In Manitoba, 49 per cent backed permanent daylight saving time, while 25 per cent of those surveyed earlier this month preferred year-round standard time.

Angus Reid said its results in Alberta represented a shift compared with the spring poll, with 33 per cent approving daylight saving time in November versus 47 per cent in March. Around two-fifths of Alberta respondents said they would prefer always being on standard time.

The poll also asked about effects of not turning clocks back, with 59 per cent of B.C. residents, 64 per cent in Manitoba and 65 per cent in Alberta reporting they faced challenges or annoyances.

The most common complaint, cited by 42 per cent of respondents, was that technology did not keep up, with some smart devices falling back despite the provincial decisions.

Less than one third of respondents in the three provinces also cited darker mornings and issues with calendars, meetings and scheduling as frequent annoyances, while 18 per cent said being out of the usual routines for Ontario, Quebec and the Maritimes was frustrating.

The Angus Reid Institute conducted an online survey from Nov. 3 to 6, 2026, with 1,634 randomized Canadian adult respondents drawn from the Angus Reid Forum. For comparison purposes, a probability sample of that size would have a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, and discrepancies in totals are due to rounding.

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