The Times Colonist in an article of March 28, 2026 by Hannah Link, reports that as of November 2026, British Columbia will change to permanent daylight time. "That means sundials in B.C. will always be one hour behind, no matter the time of year, said Victoria-based sundial enthusiast Steve Lelievre."
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Photo: Times Colonist - The sun shines on the Sundial Garden in Beacon Hill Park. The circular garden features a bronze and stone sundial created in 1947 by the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada. Situated in the Rose Garden area, it displays solar time, with an inscription reading “I count only the sunny hours.” DARREN STONE, TIMES COLONIST |
From Ogden Point to Greater Victoria Harbour to the vertical dial at Christ Church Cathedral, sundials will be an hour off. "The sundial was installed at the [cathedral] in 2001 during renovations and is dedicated to the memory of Betty Whitlow, the wife of Rev. Brian Whitlow, who was dean of the cathedral from 1955 to 1980."
Links continued in an interview with Steve Lelievre, "...he became fascinated with the Earth’s movement around the sun while gardening with a friend back home in the United Kingdom. The friend wanted to choose the right plants based on the sunniest areas of his yard, so he poked a stick in the ground and watched its shadow move. 'I was completely amazed by that and had to go away and figure out for myself how that could be,' he said. 'Once I got interested in that celestial mechanical stuff, I got interested in sundials. It’s kind of a natural progression.' "
Links also interviewed Vernon Miles is the great-great-nephew of William Willet, the English inventor of daylight time. "The 83-year-old learned about Willett and his invention as a child, and for most of his life, it’s been a fact he uses to poke fun at his friends when they complain about having to change their clocks....Miles said he would have preferred that B.C. move to permanent standard time instead of daylight time. 'I chuckled to myself,' he said. 'My uncle will forever turn over in his grave.' "
Read the full article at: https://www.timescolonist.com/local-news/will-sundials-be-adjusted-for-year-round-daylight-savings-only-time-will-tell-12066472
The transition to permanent DST actually began Sunday, March 8, 2026 according to the B.C. government. Now there is no turning back the clock on November 1st. Under the Interpretation Amendment Act, B.C. government adopted permanent year round daylight saving time (DST) "to improve people's overall health, reduce disruptions for families, simplify scheduling and provide an extra hour of evening light during the winter months." Certain locales have exceptions such as "People in southeastern B.C. (East Kootenay and Golden region) currently switch between mountain standard time and mountain daylight time, in line with Alberta."
See: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/governments/celebrating-british-columbia/daylight-saving-time for a complete description of the conversion to permanent daylight saving time for British Columbia.