Brazil: entrepreneurs in the tourism sector ask the new government the return of daylight saving time

The return of daylight savings time should once again be the subject of debate with the change of government and ministries. Entities linked to the tourism, gastronomy and accommodation sector sent two letters to the Ministries of Mines and Energy and the Environment, requesting that the summer time be adopted again in Brazil. The measure was suspended by President Jair Bolsonaro (PL) in 2019.

In November, shortly after the elections, then-president-elect Lula da Silva (PT) launched an informal poll on Twitter about the return of daylight saving time. At the time, 66.2% of users answered that they would like it to be applied again.

Businessman Fábio Aguayo, president of the Federation of Lodging, Gastronomy, Entertainment, Leisure and Similar Companies of Paraná (Feturismo) and director of the National Tourism Confederation (CNTur), filed the requests with Ministers Alexandre Silveira (Mines and Energy) and Marina Silva (Environment) on Wednesday (11).

“The resumption of summer time will combine lower consumption of electricity in peak months and increase awareness of the rational use of natural resources and combat climate change denialism and global warming”, argues Feturismo in the document.

“The intention is to show the importance of our economic sector being in line with both Ministries, not only to welcome tourists, but also to work on their awareness with leaflets with guidance in hotels, inns, airports… in addition to social media and vehicles traditional means of communication such as radio, TVs”, explained Fábio Aguayo, president of Feturismo.

“Our concern is not only with the return of daylight saving time and profit, but to work in an integrated way, reinforcing the collective problems that will cause these climate changes, if we do not focus on preservation”.

According to the entity, the return of special hours in the summer this year will guarantee a boost to the tourism, leisure and gastronomy sector, in the face of the difficulties faced during the Covid-19 pandemic in recent years. The letter recalls that, with summer time, when the clocks in some regions of the country are advanced by one hour, tourism-related activities have an extra hour during the day to receive tourists and traditional customers.

“The differentiated schedule not only generates large reductions in electricity consumption, but also encourages the adoption of new consumption habits and reflects positively on bars, restaurants, entertainment, events, accommodation and other economic activities”, says Feturismo.

With information from Gazeta do Povo