Telegraph newspaper calls for Wales to be given St David’s Day off
Support for a St David’s Day bank holiday for Wales has come from a perhaps unexpected source – the Telegraph newspaper.
The strongly Conservative and Unionist-leaning newspaper said that “with Scotland and Northern Ireland granted a day off to celebrate their patron saints, it’s only fair that Wales gets one too”.
The editorial penned by one of the newspaper’s editors, Gareth Davies, said that a bank holiday on 1 March would follow St David’s final two commands to his nation, ‘Gwnewch y pethau bychain’ (do the little things) a ‘byddwch lawen’ (be joyful).
“Well there’s nothing joyful about being dragged into work on St David’s Day seething in the knowledge that our counterparts in Northern Ireland and Scotland are afforded a day in the pub,” the article said.
“So not only do we not get our Welsh dragon on the Union Flag, but we also work an extra day a year.
“Meanwhile Scotland and Northern Ireland are represented handsomely on the flag of Great Britain. And they get a day off as a pat on the back.”
The article added: “This isn’t a mad, Leftist notion. It’s actually a very British movement of decency and fair play.
“We’re not workshy by any means, unlike our European friends. For the record, Austria gets up to 15 days off a year, Denmark 14, France 12, and Germany and Spain up to 14, depending on where you live.”
‘English and proud’
The Telegraph‘s intervention comes after Welsh Secretary of State Robert Buckland said that Wales should get St David’s Day off – but only if they give up another bank holiday.
South Swindon MP Robert Buckland told S4C’s Y Byd yn ei Le programme: “My personal view would be get rid of May Day, and have St David’s Day as our bank holiday, and it would be a nice quid pro pro.”
But the Telegraph said that both Wales and England should get a national day off to celebrate their respective nation saints.
“While we are here – England should get a day off for St George’s Day too,” they said.
“So if there was one day of the year that the English could feel comfortable adding the red cross to their Twitter bio or posting that they are ‘English and proud’ without the threat of being branded a fascist, then there should be another bank holiday in the calendar.”
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Brilliant, just when the Tory party stops being addicted to approval of Telegraph (replacing it with need for approval from Daily Mail or need for approval from mythical characters from the past – actual Thatcher would dislike the mythical Thatcher they worship) we finally get an almost good* editorial in Telegraph. *Was there need for baseless dig at Europeans? But it now seems more likely that this will happen because people in Westminster want it to happen for England on St George’s Day too. If only people in England started to want devolution of HS2 to Wales we might actually… Read more »
Dickering about days off to be “proud of your nation” is a distraction from the true cause of independence. If they can get us bickering about how many shiny baubles will get us to stay in their union, it whittles away at support for indy.
Don’t be sidetracked. This is a nothing story. The message should not be “give us a day off please Westminster” it should be “We notice you refused us what you permitted to the others”
We don’t need any support from the Telegraph toilet paper. There’s enough support for Wales creating a bank holiday to celebrate Britain’s one & only true native patron Saint David. The only ones stopping us are the Conservative party in London, the very same scummy party they support. For years only Wales has been denied the power to create a national bank holiday where both Scotland & Northern Ireland were given the devolution by the Conservatives. Recently a request by the Welsh Government for the power was denied as was the thousands who signed an online petition that were ignored… Read more »
Did you see how the Tory suggested we should HAVE St Davids Day off, but GIVE UP May Day. (like none of the other nations have to. You notice May Day is actually the international day of workers and the Labour movement?
Tory Ideology in every comment.
Never thought I’d see the day!
That does not mean I would ever buy that awful paper!
Why is the Telegragh taking the side of Wales all of a sudden? Is this a new ploy by the Unionists to actually ‘look’ at Wales, realise it’s there, in order to stop it eventually leaving the UK? Not because they respect Wales but because it doesn’t want (as Frosty put it) – the humiliation of the break-up?
A sideshow about nationalistic days off detracts from the true cause of getting the hell out of the union.
The Torygraph is trying to gauge the minimum number of worthless baubles the Welsh need to stay in the Union.
Don’t be distracted by it.
The only reason St DavidsDay will be granted is as an afterthought when the English feel a bit patriotic about their patron saint
Regarding their last paragraph, who or what is it that brands English people ‘fascist’ for displaying a St George Cross because it is NOT Welsh or Scottish people. It is those who continue to force home Empire control under the flag of the Union. They cannot allow the cross of St George to appear in isolation as it will expose their wrongdoing in subjugating all the nations of this island which are all equal in not being permitted to exist. ALL people in ALL the nations PLEASE WAKE UP!
It will never happen until the people and our political leaders act
I am not a catholic. I have no need of saints. I am not a Royalist. I care nothing about which feudal banners have been mashed into a flag which looks like a coloured in bumhole. I am for unity and cooperation. But despite the claims in the name of the UK, there is no union here. There is nothing which unites the nations. There is merely a pretence. If there is neither equity nor equality it is not a union. And there is none. I don’t care about a day in the pub celebrating jingoism. Do not be distracted… Read more »
Buckland is probably after a Thatcher day. I’m in favour too…. We could burn an effigy.