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Ministers are considering calling a bank holiday if England win the FIFA World Cup.
The most likely date for the national day off, if the Three Lions are victorious, is understood to be Friday, July 24 - five days after Sunday’s final.
England face Argentina on Wednesday following a dramatic 2-1 win over Norway in extra time on Saturday night.
If Thomas Tuchel’s side triumph in the semi-final against the South Americans, the team will play Spain, who defeated tournament favourites France 2-0 on Tuesday night.
Sir Keir Starmer has hinted there could be an extra bank holiday if England come home the winners.
The Prime Minister told reporters at the Nato summit last week: “I don’t want to jinx it, but ask me again if we get to the final.”
Sir Keir will attend the Word Cup final at the MetLife stadium in New Jersey should England get past Argentina.
Andy Burnham, set to take over from Sir Keir as Prime Minister on Monday, July 20, would earlier this month not be drawn on whether he would agree to a bank holiday.
He told LBC: “I’m an Evertonian, I do not ever back anything when it comes to football, I don’t do it with England either.
“I think they’ve got a bit of improvement to do before we can start seriously dreaming of it coming home.”
It is not clear whether the extra bank holiday would only apply in England or across the UK as the four nations have different allowances.
Scotland has already enjoyed a national day off after the country qualified for its first World Cup since 1998 this year.
Wales is the only nation that does not have the power to grant its own bank holidays and any day off awarded in England would also apply there.
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Both countries currently have eight bank holidays a year, while Scotland has nine and Northern Ireland 10.
Kemi Badenoch said she would probably not back a bank holiday if England wins, arguing that the “private sector would still be working and the public sector would take the day off”.
Asked whether she would support a bank holiday if the Three Lions win the tournament, the Tory leader told a Politics UK event last week: “Probably not.
“Sadly, we all know what would happen with a bank holiday – the private sector would still be working and the public sector would take the day off, and you’d all have to pay for it.
“This Conservative Party is very much about common sense. Party hard but work hard too, that is my motto.”
