On the 15th of December I introduced a bill to make St George’s Day or the nearest working day, a Bank Holiday in England and to make St David’s Day, or the nearest working day, a Bank Holiday in Wales. On the 13th of May the Bill will hopefully have its second reading and I need as much support as possible from the English and Welsh Public, and my fellow MPs to make sure that it passes. If you’d like to write to your MP to ask them to support my bill, then click here and fill in the form to do so. You can also show your personal support by voting in the Democracy UK Facebook Poll. Who was St George and St David? We all know Saint George as the famous dragon slayer, whose bravery led to the freeing of a town from a vicious dragon and thus led them in their subsequent conversion to Christianity. But did you know that he was himself an immigrant to this country? Saint George is widely believed to have been born in Turkey and served in the Roman Army. St David was a Welsh Bishop during the 6th century and is remember for his unifying effect and the strengthening of Christianity in Wales, as much as for his miracles and close connection to nature. Why make St George’s Day a bank holiday? Although St George and St David are both Christian saints, they are nowadays known not just for their Christian roots but as national figures, and for having given their name to their respective countries’ national day. If used correctly these national days can encourage community cohesion and celebrate all the best aspects of English and Welsh culture and society. There is an almost endless list of things that can be celebrated, including our long history of tolerance, acceptance of all who live here and our pride in being British. In recent years the symbols of our Patriotism have been hijacked by the fringe right of our country – let’s reclaim them and ensure that all who live in Britain, whatever their background, are able to join together and celebrate all the things that make Britain ‘Great’. There is also another positive benefit to the creation of a new bank holiday on St George’s Day as it will bring the start of the holiday season earlier, giving a boost to the tourism industry on which so many of our towns and areas of our countryside rely on. The Government has recognised this and as part of its tourism strategy stated that it will consult on the creation of a Bank Holiday for St Georges Day. Whilst the government’s plans suggest moving May Day, my Bill currently calls for a new Bank Holiday altogether leaving May Day as it is. Won’t another bank holiday cost businesses money? Time and time again we hear that it would be bad for our economy to have an extra Bank Holiday. Whilst there may be some truth that an extra day’s holiday will have a limited economic impact, we must remember that the world has changed and work is no longer about turning up at a particular place at a particular time and then leaving at another fixed time. Our small shops and businesses in town centres would benefit from the extra customers, our local pubs would undoubtedly attract many who wish to toast St George and St David and our leisure and tourism industries would also benefit from an extended tourism season with a new bank holiday. To put this in context we need to look at the relatively few Bank Holidays we receive when compared to our European neighbours and North American cousins. We are ranked 16th in Europe for number of bank holidays with only 8 days whereas France has 11, Sweden 11 and Germany 12. Even the notoriously hardworking Americans have thirteen Bank Holidays a year, although I do accept they receive less annual vacation. Has anyone ever argued that the economies of these countries are being held back by the number of bank holidays they have? Vote in the Facebook Poll to show your support I want to use the power of the Internet and social media to show the public’s support for my attempt to make St George’s Day a Bank Holiday, and am working with Facebook’s Democracy UK page to carry out a poll of Facebook’s members. Please complete the poll and share it with your friends. Write to your MP to show your support On the 19th of May my Bill will receive its second reading in the House of Commons. Parliamentary procedure means that I may need the votes of 100 MPs on the day to move my bill to the next stage and continue the legislative path to a St George's Day Bank Holiday. You can show your support by emailing your MP. To do so, simply fill in the details below and click Next. You will then be given the opportunity to compose your message and preview it before it is sent via email. (Your details will not be stored by my website).