Hopes of a bonus bank holiday to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the end of the Second World War were dashed as Downing Street said there were no plans for an extra day off
Downing Street has poured cold water on hopes of an extra bank holiday next year.
The PM’s official spokesman dismissed reports that Brits could get a bonus day off to celebrate the 80th anniversary of the end of the Second World War. Victory in Europe (VE) Day on May 8 marks Germany’s unconditional surrender in 1945 and the end of the war in Europe. Victory over Japan Day (VJ) on August 15 commemorates when Japan surrendered, effectively bringing the Second World War to an end.
Speculation had been mounting that the Government was looking at creating an extra bank holiday to give the country a four-day weekend in either May or August. But No10 today said the commemorations would not include an extra day off.
The PM’s official spokesman said: “The 80th anniversary of VE Day and VJ Day are moments of huge significance for our country where we come together to honour the memory of those who served.
“We are committed to commemorating and observing these national important occasions appropriately which is why we’ve announced more than £10million for events to mark them. We’ll set out more detail shortly.
“These plans do not include an additional bank holiday but we will look to use the existing early May bank holiday for commemorative events.”