Charities and Businesses Call for Permanent Jubilee Bank Holiday

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03 May 2022

The “Thank Holiday” campaign for a new annual Bank Holiday from 2023 is being supported by the Confederation of British Industry, Hospitality UK, and Trade Union Congress.

In an open letter to Prime Minister Boris Johnson, several business leaders and charity representatives want to permanently recognise the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee with the creation of a new annual public holiday.

This would bring the total annual bank holidays in England & Wales to nine.

The letter says: “We are convinced that the benefits of a new holiday would outweigh the costs, as well as serving as a demonstration of our national values and compassion”

As The Queen marks seventy years on the throne in 2022, the May Bank Holiday Weekend will be moved to Thursday 2 June and an additional Bank Holiday on Friday 3 June will mean a four-day weekend.

“The proposal for a new Thank Holiday to recognise the Queen’s selfless service and to extend that notion of service across communities is a really exciting one. Business is keen to support and we at the CBI will work with the campaign’s supporters and employers to make it a real success.”

–Tony Danker

Director-General, CBI

“Thank Holiday”

Campaigners are calling for the new Bank Holiday, not only to celebrate the Queen’s contributions but to send a message of “service and kindness” to British communities and to recognise the country’s sacrifices through the challenges of the pandemic.

Those in the hospitality sector, including CAMRA and UK Hospitality, also want to highlight sectors particularly badly impacted by the pandemic, that would benefit greatly from additional economic activity.

Tony Danker, Director-General of the CBI, said: “The proposal for a new Thank Holiday to recognise the Queen’s selfless service and to extend that notion of service across communities is a really exciting one. Business is keen to support and we at the CBI will work with the campaign’s supporters and employers to make it a real success.”

How Would a New Bank Holiday Cost?

Research by PwC found that the government’s existing figures overestimated the potential cost of a new bank holiday by 64 per cent and failed to account for the positive benefits associated with bank holidays.

The central estimate of the total cost to the economy derived under the PwC framework is £831 million, equating to £20.13 per adult or 0.04 per cent of GDP.  The cost could be further reduced to £786 million if held on a Friday.

However, these estimates are before accounting for the positive social benefits and the economic boost to hospitality, retail and tourism.

A review of bank holiday behaviour, wellbeing and community cohesion suggests that any direct costs would be partially or wholly offset by benefits to wellbeing.

Picture: a photograph showing an image of a #5 Bank of England bank note. The Queen's image can be seen. Image Credit: PX Fuel

Article written by Ella Tansley | Published 03 May 2022

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