Nadhim Zahawi (Stratford-on-Avon) (Con)
I beg to move,
That leave be given to bring in a Bill to designate St George’s Day, or the nearest working day, as an annual public holiday in England with effect from 2012; to designate St David’s Day, or the nearest working day, as an annual public holiday in Wales with effect from 2012; and for connected purposes.
In all three primary party manifestos, we vowed to promote national integration. One of the most effective ways of achieving that is to make the saints’ days of St George and St David bank holidays in England and Wales respectively. This is a subject that means a lot to me and to many of my constituents in Stratford-on-Avon. I stood up and promised the people of Stratford-on-Avon that I would not add to the legislative burden that they already face and that I would take away from it. I promised that if I had the chance, I would introduce this Bill.
Unlike our neighbours in Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, England and Wales do not currently celebrate our saints’ days as bank holidays, which is something that I wish to change. It is quite right that in 2011 there should be a special one-off bank holiday to celebrate the royal wedding, but from 2012 onwards, the royal wedding bank holiday should be replaced by bank holidays that celebrate our two countries’ patron saints.
We all know St George as the famous dragon slayer whose bravery freed a town from the tyranny of a vicious dragon and eventually led the townsfolk to Christianity. I have to point out, however, that St George was an immigrant to this country. St George is widely believed to have been born in Turkey and served in the Roman army before being taken into English hearts. My hon. Friend the Father of the House, who is an expert on that region, tells me that he may even have been of Kurdish origin—I speculate further that his skin may have been my shade of tan. St David is remembered not only for his miracles and for his close affinity to nature, but as a great unifying force for Christianity and for Wales. Both saints had a huge impact on the culture of their respective countries. What they stood for is just as relevant today as it was way back then.
We all know our patron saints, but why is it important to celebrate them? The best answer is simple: it is through national days that we can celebrate what makes our nation so great. On such days, we can be yet more proud of the best aspects of English and Welsh culture and society, such as our history of tolerance, acceptance and scientific innovation, and the huge impact that we have had on the history of the world. There is so much to be proud of in our past and so much that our children can learn from, both in our successes and our mistakes.
In recent years, I have been saddened to see the symbols of our patriotism hijacked by the fringe right-wing of our country. Today, this House can go a long way towards reclaiming them. We can ensure that all who live in Britain, whatever their background, can join together and celebrate all that makes Britain great. I am a firm believer in the supreme value of our culture and history, and we should never let anyone tell us not to celebrate them.
I will now put to bed the one argument against such a change, which I have heard time and again, that an extra bank holiday would be bad for our economy. As a business man and entrepreneur who has built strong and enduring businesses, I reject the idea that one extra bank holiday will affect productivity. The working people of this country will do the work that they need to do regardless of a new bank holiday. We must remember that the whole concept of work has changed. Work is no longer just about turning up at a particular place at a particular time and then leaving at a fixed time. One beneficiary of the proposal would be small shops and businesses in our town centres, which would benefit from extra custom during the holiday. Our local pubs will undoubtedly attract many people who wish to toast St George or St David. Through the creation of special events for those days, our leisure and tourism industries will do well.
To further put the proposal in context, we should consider the relatively few bank holidays that we receive compared with our European and north American neighbours. We are 16th in Europe with only eight bank holidays, whereas France has 11, Sweden has 11 and Germany has 12. Even our notoriously hard-working American friends have 13 bank holidays a year, although I accept that they take less vacation time overall.
Interestingly, and by a strange coincidence, YouGov recently commissioned a survey into the British public’s attitude on this issue. It discovered strong public support for an increase in the number of bank holidays. More than two thirds of adults—68%—think that it would be appropriate for Great Britain to have at least nine days of public holiday a year. Of the calendar occasions that are candidates for the extra bank holiday, YouGov found that St George’s day is the most popular with 22% of support. That is just ahead of Remembrance day on 21%, which is the other clear favourite. The battle of Trafalgar and the summer solstice came third and fourth respectively.
I am delighted that the Prime Minister heard my call for the flag of St George to be flown over Downing street in the summer. It is high time that the flag was taken back from those groups that are not worthy of it. Today could be a huge step in the right direction. If passed, the Bill could be of real benefit to social cohesion in England and Wales, and I hope that colleagues will join me in supporting it and making it a reality. It would be a very fine wedding present to both nations. I commend the Bill to the House.
Question put and agreed to.
Ordered,
That Nadhim Zahawi, Claire Perry, Nick Boles, Keith Vaz, Brandon Lewis, Andrew Rosindell, Jonathan Edwards, Simon Hughes, Sajid Javid, Mr Robert Buckland, Mr Brian Binley and Robert Halfon present the Bill.
Nadhim Zahawi accordingly presented the Bill.
Bill read the First time; to be read a Second time on Friday 13 May and to be printed (Bill 128).