Sir Geoff Hurst has joined England fans in calling for a last-minute bank holiday next Monday if the team win Euro 2024 – as a tweet from Sir Keir Starmer resurfaced, suggesting he could be in favour despite a potential economic hit of £3billion.
The 2-1 victory for the Three Lions over the Netherlands last night means they now have the chance to become European champions for the first time on Sunday.
And some supporters are insisting the nation should be given the day off to celebrate if England are victorious in the Berlin showpiece against favourites Spain.
Sir Geoff, who scored a hat-trick when England won the 1966 World Cup, has launched a Change.org campaign urging King Charles III to grant a bank holiday.
And some fans have cited a tweet by Sir Keir last August when he called for a ‘celebratory bank holiday’ if the Lionesses had won the Women’s World Cup.
The Conservative Government at the time was opposed to the idea, and in any event the England women’s team lost 1-0 to Spain in the final of that tournament in Sydney.
The Prime Minister, who watched some of last night’s semi-final while attending a Nato summit in Washington DC, has confirmed he will be at Sunday’s final.
But there has been no official word from the new Government on whether there will be a last-minute bank holiday on Monday should England be successful.
Sir Geoff launched his campaign for a bank holiday today in association with Budweiser, and addressed a letter to the King saying: ‘England are on the verge of making history.
‘As the last surviving member of the ’66 starting XI, I can’t tell you how incredible it would be to see England win again. But this moment isn’t just about the team. It’s about England fans across the nation.’
He added: ‘Should England win, I respectfully ask Your Majesty to grant this Bank Holiday on Monday, July 15. Let’s give every fan across this great nation the chance to properly toast the champions of Europe.’
Among those also backing the calls today was Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey, who said: ‘The Three Lions are playing their first ever final on foreign soil, and if they bring it home, the government should bring home a bank holiday to celebrate.
‘England deserves the chance to celebrate a once in a generation event. Who knows – we might even get decent weather.’
Sir Keir has previously backed calls for a bank holiday following an England football tournament victory – although his stance since taking over as Prime Minister last Friday is not yet known.
In the tweet posted on August 16 last year, Sir Keir wrote: ‘It’s almost 60 years since England won the World Cup. I’m never complacent about anything…but there should be a celebratory bank holiday if the Lionesses bring it home.’
But a Government spokesman said at the time: ‘We congratulate the Lionesses on their fantastic achievement in getting to the Women’s World Cup final. The current pattern of public and bank holidays is well established and there are no plans to change this.’
Bank holidays are created by the monarch acting on government advice under the Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971. The department responsible for bank holidays is the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.
Estimates of the potential cost of a bank holiday have varied wildly in previous years, with Government modelling putting it at £1.36billion in 2022 when taking into account the impact on business of closures, disruption to production schedules and premium payments to staff working on the bank holiday.
However, experts at PricewaterhouseCoopers estimated the cost at the time to be about £500million lower, at about £831million.
The subject was discussed on ITV’s Good Morning Britain today when a figure of £3billion was mentioned. Former Apprentice candidate Tre Lowe saying: ‘It’s not even a debate. Come on, we haven’t come this close in so long.
‘The nation needs this, everyone is jubilant. And even if we don’t get it officially, I think half the workforce are not going to turn up anyway. I mean, come on.’
But fellow guest, maths teacher Bobby Seagull said: ‘I’m the most enthusiastic football fan there is, but I’m just consulting and they are saying no, this is a red card to this idea.
‘I tell you why – I’m going to be grinch of economic realism. We’ve just a general election and this government’s run a campaign of ten years of economic renewal, we need growth and productivity. And then the first thing we’re going to do is have a day off where we’re going lose between £1billion and £3billion.
‘And the reality is we can’t afford small businesses to shut down, we’ve got long waiting lists for the NHS and hospitals. I love a bit of football myself, but economics takes precedent.’
Other fans have taken to social media to say a bank holiday should be put in place – with some suggesting many people will not turn up to work anyway if England win.
One told BBC Radio Nottingham last night: ‘No one’s going to work on Monday, we’re all going to get s*** faced.’
And HR expert Paul Holcroft, managing director at Croner, told : ‘A question that crops up whenever England makes it to the final of a major competition is whether there will be an extra bank holiday if they win.
‘Nothing has been said officially about this yet, but the answer is probably not. We didn’t get one when the women’s team won Euro 2022 nor was one proposed when the men’s team made it to the final of Euro 2020.
However, employers can offer some flexibility if they are able to on Monday morning. There is no obligation to do this, for many it will be business as usual.
‘But if employers do choose to do this it could be good for morale. In a weird twist of fate, there will be an extra bank holiday on Monday in Jersey, but it’s for the royal visit rather than anything to do with the football!’
Alan Price, chief executive at BrightHR, added: ‘Monday is set to be a day of major disruption for businesses as England faces Spain in the historic Euros final on Sunday.
‘Expect a tsunami of sick calls, annual leave requests, and lateness as fans recover from a night of celebration.’
He said that previous Euros and World Cup finals show that workplace absences can double on days after big England matches, adding: ‘Small businesses, in particular, will be hit hard, with staff calling in sick in droves after a late night in the pub.’
Back in July 2021, Sir Keir also called for a bank holiday ahead of the Euro 2020 final, which England eventually lost to Italy.
He told the Mirror at the time: ‘If we win on Sunday, the country should get the chance to celebrate it properly with an extra bank holiday, granted in the name of the England team.’
Hower in April this year, he was asked about a bank holiday for St George’s Day and said it would not be possible due to the country’s economic situation.
Sir Keir said at the time: ‘A bank holiday would be very nice but I think that, with the economy where it is at the moment, we have to celebrate in-and-around the work that we’re doing, because we need to absolutely take our country forward.’
has contacted the Prime Minister’s spokesman for a comment today.