The UK could soon tick in time with central Europe if plans to change the time zone are approved.

Ahead of the clocks going back later tonight, MPs and academics are backing the switch, claiming the extra light in the evening could save lives and benefit public health.

This could mean Scotland will tick an hour behind if they oppose the proposal as they have long been against the change.

Tom Mullarkey, chief executive of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, told The Times that if it went ahead it would save 80 lives and more than 200 serious injuries on Britain's roads.

AA president Edmund King said Scots might consider the swap if they saw the benefits in England and Wales first.