Concerns about TV scheduling was a major reason regional Queenslanders opposed adopting daylight saving time in 1989.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
At the time, the state was about to start a one-year trial of daylight savings, pitting southeast Queensland against the rest of the state.
The battle to wind clocks forward an hour in summer was unsuccessful then and it remains contentious.
The release of 1989 cabinet documents on Wednesday reveals TV scheduling was a big issue facing politicians at the time.
Many in the bush were worried about their television programming during the trial, indicating they did not want their programs tampered with, then-industrial affairs minister Vince Lester told cabinet.
"The matter of the possible re-scheduling of TV programs has been taken up with the ABC and commercial and regional stations," he said in October of that year.
The issue was so polarising, some in the bush viewed it as more important than policing issues, he said.
Skin cancer, as well as the 'hot climate' of the state, were also concerns for those in the bush.
The government wrote to the health department, "to ascertain what arrangements can be made in respect of educational programs or other means to assist the public with concerns".
The trial was extended for another two years and concluded in 1992, when the results of a March referendum rejected a permanent move to adopt the time change used in every other east coast state.
Australian Associated Press
