Government's stance on adding extra bank holiday with eight more to come in 2025 Government manifestos for the 2017 and 2019 general elections included a pledge to introduce four new UK bank holidays to mark the patron saints of England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. Government manifestos for the 2017 and 2019 general elections included a pledge to introduce four new UK bank holidays to mark the patron saints of England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. The government's stance on adding an extra bank holiday - with eight more left in 2025 - has been revealed. The Labour Party government manifestos for the 2017 and 2019 general elections included a pledge to introduce four new UK bank holidays to mark the patron saints of England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. But the pledge was dropped by Sir Keir Starmer in 2024, before winning the General Election and defeating the Conservative Party at the polls. Sir Keir declared patriotism “a force for good” and said his party must not flinch at flying the flag of St George. ‌ He said he felt “great pride and gratitude” to be English, and recalled “belting out Three Lions” at Wembley Stadium during the Euro 96 tournament. Article continues below READ MORE UK faces 'five day' mini-heatwave next week as BBC Weather issues warning On Tuesday, Jeremy Corbyn once again made the case for a St George’s Day bank holiday, writing on X: “I’ve always believed that today should be one of four new public holidays across the UK. Let’s bring our country together and give workers the break they deserve.” ‌ Esther McVey, the minister for common sense, hosted a Downing Street reception for entrepreneurs and community leaders on Tuesday afternoon. A spokesperson for Number 10 Downing Street said the reception was designed to “celebrate the very best of English produce and enterprise, attended by business owners, charities and voluntary organisations”. 49 per cent of English respondents said St George's Day should be a bank holiday in England onlyi in a 2018 poll, while 24 per cent said it should be a bank holiday for the whole of UK. The next one is the early May bank holiday on Monday, May 5, which is marked across the UK. This is followed by the spring bank holiday on Monday, May 26. Article continues below Ahead of VE Day, on May 8, the Prime Minister's spokesperson clarified to the press in November that plans "do not include an additional bank holiday". The spokesperson stated: "We we will look to use the existing May Day bank holiday for commemorative events. We are committed to commemorating these nationally important occasions appropriately which is why we have announced more than £10m to mark them".