gawd I hate cold weather

Sean got to the reply before I did. It is mandated country-wide.

Not sure what the reasons are for disabling it (could be to look cool/stealthy or perhaps the thinking is that it "wastes" fuel or burns out a $20 bulb sooner).

Either way, if you run without DRL, you better be smart enough to recognise low lighting conditions and more often than not, they don't so you see a dark car whereas others, even if they don't have their parking or headlights on, at least have DRLs. In addition, a car without DRL is hidden amongst a sea of cars with DRLs (just a heads up for you Americans that are driving up to Canada). If I'm turning left, your car without lights is difficult to see. (more prevalent during the darker months. You're ok in the summer months with brighter conditions).