Spain could be set to lose siestas under new laws on working hours

Spain is set to lose its beloved siestas after the country's prime minister proposed to bring Spanish working days into line with the rest of Europe's.

Mariano Rajoy, leader of Spain’s caretaker centre-right government, has put forward legislation that would put an end to Spain's traditional working days with relaxing three hour lunch breaks.

Under the proposed new laws, Spanish workers would clock off at 6pm, around two hours earlier than at present.

Speaking at a party conference at the weekend, Mr Rajoy said he was hoping to gain the support of other parties, unions and business leaders to change the working day, which he would need to secure if the proposal was to go ahead.

There would be exemptions to the legislation, for example, companies working in shifts.

Currently, workers in Spain are normally in the office from 9am to 8pm, with two to three hours off at lunchtime for the famous siesta.

But some have complained that the long lunch break drags out their working day, and many favour the shorter days with briefer breaks that most workers in Western Europe are accustomed to.

It is thought that Rajoy's proposal could have been put forward with a ploy to winning votes in the country's upcoming elections in June.

It is not the first radical proposal Rajoy has put forward - he has also suggested changing Spain's time zone to bring it into line with Portugal and the UK.