Government ‘set to introduce new bank holiday next year’

Two dates are said to be under consideration for the extra day off

The government is reportedly planning an extra bank holiday for next summer to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War Two.

According to the Express, plans are in place for a four-day bank holiday weekend in 2025.

May 8 is Victory in Europe Day, which marks the formal surrender of Germany in 1945, whilst August 15 is Victory over Japan Day, when Imperial Japan surrendered, officially bring the Second World War to a close.

The Express reported that a date for the extra bank holiday has yet to be agreed, but that an announcement is “imminent.”

It is thought one of the plans would be for a four-day weekend to span from Friday May 9 to Monday May 12. An alternative would reportedly be for Friday August 22 to be made a bank holiday, making a four-day weekend when combined with the summer bank holiday on Monday August 25.

However, Number 10 has since come out and denied the reports, saying the May Day bank holiday will instead be “repurposed as a day to mark VE Day.”

The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “An important balance has to be struck for business and services in the broader economy.”

Some 70,000 British WW2 veterans are still alive today, and next year’s celebrations will likely be the final major milestone to celebrate their service.

Speaking to the Express, Market Garden Veteran Geoff Roberts, 99, said: “I think it’s very important in these current times we remember those that gave their lives for our freedom and peace in Europe. We should never forget them. Maybe an extra bank holiday will help to remind people about what’s happened in the past.”

Eight public bank holidays are currently scheduled for 2025. The first one is on New Year’s Day, before Good Friday and Easter Sunday in April, May 5 and 26, August 25, Christmas Day and Boxing Day.