As a general rule, most of us like to be awake when it’s light and asleep when it’s dark right? Right. Then it’s interesting to ponder why every year the country sets its clocks so that we spend more time sleeping in the light and less time living in it.

Headed up by our friends at 10.10, the Lighter Later campaign is calling for a three-year trial of a new timekeeping model where Britain’s clocks are moved forward by one hour throughout the year. But setting Britain’s clocks to Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) +1 hour in winter and GMT +2 hours in summer is about far more than reducing the effects of Seasonal Affective Disorder.

More natural light during the day would reduce the need for polluting electric lights, which according to Lighter Later would cut at least 447,000 tonnes of CO2 pollution – the equivalent to more than 50,000 cars driving all the way around the world – each year. It would also lower electricity bills and reduce peak power demand.

But there are also a host of social benefits. Lighter Later claims that the move would save 100 lives each year and prevent hundreds of serious injuries by making the roads safer. This in turn would save the NHS around £138 million a year through reducing road casualties. It would also reduce crime and the fear of crime, help make people healthier and tackle obesity by giving people more time to exercise and play sport outside in the evening, improve quality of life for older people, and create 60-80,000 new jobs in leisure and tourism, bringing an extra £2.5 - £3.5 billion into the economy each year.

With all the potential benefits it could bring Good Energy thinks it sounds like a no-brainer, and 10.10 say it’s the best proof yet that cutting carbon and making life better can and should go hand in hand.

The Daylight Saving Bill, is being presented as a Private Members Bill later today and it will be the first chance for the Government to decide whether they will back the proposal or not. It would seem that lots of MPs are planning to vote in favour, but the decision is really in the hands of the ministers, so the support of Vince Cable and Ed Davey in the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) is vital.

You can register your support for Lighter Later here, but we’ll keep you posted on how it goes in Parliament today.