Yesterday, the Ontario government announced that Northwestern Ontario would adopt permanent daylight time (by the way, daylight savings time is not a thing—it’s saving, singular), which means we will not “fall back” on Nov. 1.
It’s also caused a wee bit of confusion. Some self-appointed timekeepers have pegged Christmas sunrise as late as 10:40 a.m. this year, for example. That’s not quite right.
What is true is that this winter we will be on the same time as all of Ontario and Quebec, meaning it will be noon here and noon about 2,000 km away.
Kenora-Rainy River MPP Greg Rickford worked with municipalities and First Nation communities throughout northwestern Ontario to ensure there was a consensus to follow Manitoba in maintaining year-round daylight time.
Here’s how it happened
As noted in yesterday’s article, the municipalities and communities of the region were essentially unanimous in choosing to stick to the same time as Manitoba, including the region’s Anishinaabe communities, which made a formal resolution in support of the move, noting that breaking up Treaty #3 Territory across two time zones might create challenges.
In a press release issued Tuesday afternoon, the body welcomed the decision.
“Grand Council Treaty #3 welcomes the Government of Ontario’s announcement to move Northwestern Ontario to permanent Daylight Saving Time, effective Nov. 1, 2026, aligning with Manitoba’s decision to discontinue seasonal clock changes,” the release said.
“Through this resolution, the Chiefs-in-Assembly reaffirmed the importance of maintaining consistency across the Territory while ensuring that decisions affecting the Anishinaabe Nation in Treaty #3 recognize the interconnectedness of its communities and respect the needs of its citizens.”
So pretty much everybody was on board, and the province proclaimed it a done deal.
What it means in practical terms
The time difference will require some adjustments for everyone.
First of all, the change means Fort Frances and the rest of Northwestern Ontario will be on the same time as the rest of the province of Ontario, including Thunder Bay, Toronto, Ottawa and all of Quebec for half of the year. That’s two whole time zones, for those keeping score.
That won’t change unless the rest of the province also ditches the twice-a-year time change: that can’t happen until Ontario, Quebec and the northeastern U.S. decide together (for economic and technical reasons) they’ll stop the clock change.
Here, televised sporting events and other TV shows will start later than usual this winter, in line with the Eastern Standard Time schedule.
This also means we will no longer be on the same time as our neighbours to the south in International Falls, who will be an hour behind us. The United States has legislation moving through the system that would also create permanent daylight time in that country, but it hasn’t passed in time to take effect with the 2026 time change.
If you’re planning to attend events across the border, remember they are an hour behind until March. If you’re inviting your American friends north to Canada for anything, you’ll want to remind them, lest they arrive an hour late.
When will it be dark?
The change doesn’t alter the amount of daylight Fort Frances receives by a single minute. The days aren’t getting shorter, longer, darker or brighter. All that’s changing is where the daylight lands on the clock.
But the switch to permanent daylight time does mean there will be changes in the timing of sunrise and sunset. In the weeks around the winter solstice (Dec. 21), sunrise in this part of Northern Ontario will be around 9 a.m., with sunset just around 5:20 p.m. In eastern Quebec, at the far end of what will basically be one giant Eastern Time Zone for the winter months, sunrise will be around 7:30 a.m.
So 7:30 a.m. for them: sunrise. For us: pitch black. Same time, different solar reality. At 5:20 p.m. we’ll see the sun set, but for them it will have gone down 90 minutes ago.
Later winter sunrises will mean that in the darkest parts of winter, late December through January, children who are walking to school may be doing so in the dark. Parents may want to consider adding additional reflective material to their kids’ winterwear.
Solar noon, the moment the sun is highest in the sky, won’t occur anywhere near 12 p.m. In Fort Frances around the winter solstice, the sun will reach its highest point closer to 1 p.m. on the clock.
What about my cellphone or computer?
In Ontario, most mobile devices that get their time from the towers should be programmed not to change over on Nov. 1; the government will have communicated the change to the telecom companies to keep things consistent across the board. Some have already implemented the change.
Depending on their settings, computers and other devices may or may not need to be adjusted to ensure they have the right time; some devices may need to install updates in order to respond properly.
Anecdotally, the Apple iMac this article has been written on displayed an update alert on Tuesday saying “Updated Time Zone Information Available: Restart to apply new time zone definitions.”
Overall, the hope behind changing to permanent daylight time is to make life more convenient by not having to change your clocks. It will also give you a little light at the end of the day when you run errands or pick up last-minute groceries.
The fact is, everyone from Shebandowan to Kenora will be dealing with the difference, so as winter approaches, remember that we’re all dealing with the same change. Or lack of change.
But hey, there may be a silver lining: Now, after New Year’s, you could conceivably celebrate midnight in Fort Frances, drive across the bridge, and find it’s only 11 p.m. in Minnesota and celebrate it again!
