Flicker, the temporal modulation of light, is an unwanted effect found in energy efficient light bulbs. It is caused by cheap ballasts, the power supplies that are required for their operation. As energy efficient light bulbs were pushed into consumer’s homes by EU and US energy efficiency regulations, it has become a health concern: Flicker has been linked to eyestrain, headaches and migraines. Literature and studies on these effects were widely known by the time the first energy efficiency legislation was passed. Complex and thus more expensive ballasts have always been able to provide high quality, flicker free light, but were adopted only slowly. When fluorescent lights made their way into consumer’s homes in the early 2000s, regulation was enacted that all but eliminated the flicker caused by their ballasts. When it became clear that LEDs would soon replace their fluorescent counterparts, no legislative action was taken to ensure the same performance standards. Instead, priority was given to lower lamp cost.This resulted in the widespread use of cheap power supplies in LED products released during the past decade. To consumers, the flicker behavior of lamps seemed arbitrary and a general property of LED light bulbs, rather than the result of an inadequate, yet low-cost power supply. This led to reservations about the new technology amongst consumers. The latest EU lighting energy efficiency regulation (EU) 2019/2020 finally made LED based light bulbs flicker free by enacting strict performance limits on ballast performance. The United Kingdom must adopt similar standards or risk seeing all those low-quality light bulbs that cannot be sold on the EU market on store shelves. This policy brief aims to inform about the fundamental cause of flicker in artificial lighting, its negative effects on wellbeing and considers the drivers of EU legislative response in support of advances in lighting technology.