Rishi Sunak laughs off request for bank holiday after Euros final

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The August bank holiday has given people a welcome three-day weekend this week. The additional day off will have come as a vital lifeline for many British workers, many of whom may have recently returned to the office. Unfortunately, once today has passed, they will have to wait some time for another holiday that won’t use up their annual leave.

Today’s bank holiday is officially known as the summer bank holiday and is the last of the season.

After today’s, there are only two more Brits can look forward to, on Christmas Day and Boxing Day.

As the two occasions fall on the weekend, the final holidays of 2021 have moved to substitutes on December 27 and 28.

They form two of the eight bank holidays Brits can expect per year, and trade unions are leading calls for more.\

Frances O’Grady, general secretary for the Trades Union Congress (TUC), a federation of the UK’s trade unions, presented a compelling case.

She said the Government should look at new public holidays between August and December to thank Britain’s workers for seeing the country through hard times.

While today’s holiday is a “welcome break”, especially for those “on the front line”, Ms O’Grady added the number of holidays Brits get is “stingy” compared to other nations.

England and Wales come at the bottom of the pile when it comes to bank holidays, with Scotland on nine per year and Northern Ireland on ten.

EU countries are much better off and get an average of 12 per year.

Japanese nationals get the most holidays, with 17 per working year.

The TUC has suggested Brits get at least 12, in line with the average on the rest of the continent.

And Ms O’Grady said it is time for people to discuss where the Government should place the new holidays.

She said: “It’s time for a national conversation – when should our new holidays be? What might they celebrate?

“An autumn holiday to break the long stretch to Christmas would be a good start.”

Organisations have long petitioned for additional bank holidays, especially those that bridge time between summer and winter.

Prominent economists once advocated for another day off to provide a boost.

Last year, while the country was in the throes of lockdown, Douglas McWilliams, deputy chairman of the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR), floated the idea.

He said the occasion would bring a “boost to spending” and help the UK’s economy get back on track.

Overall, he calculated the increased spending would bring a “rough £500million a day boost”.

Mr McWilliams also suggested a four-day working week could help the country’s finances.

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