St David's Day: Welsh secretary rejects predecessor's bank holiday call

Requests for St David's Day to be made a public holiday have been rejected by the UK government

Rishi Sunak's new Welsh secretary has rejected his predecessor's calls for a bank holiday on St David's Day.

Sir Robert Buckland suggested another holiday could be scrapped to make it happen.

But his replacement, David TC Davies, said there were "advantages" with the status quo.

He said he thought his own children would have played video games instead of celebrating Welsh culture had St David's Day been a bank holiday.

In the same meeting Mr Davies admitted that off-grid energy support was "not generous".

The Welsh Conservatives in the Senedd are among those who have called for the patron saint's day to be a day off, while the Welsh government has argued that the powers should be devolved to the Welsh Parliament.

David TC Davies spoke to a Commons committee on Wednesday

Sir Robert 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 quo."

Sir Robert left government last week. He was replaced by the Monmouth MP Mr Davies.

But Mr Davies rejected that argument in the House of Commons Welsh Affairs Select Committee when quizzed by Ynys Mon Tory MP Virginia Crosbie.

Without naming Sir Robert, the Welsh secretary raised the suggestion of moving May Day but added: "That isn't government policy at the moment."

"This isn't something I'd ever be stepping out of cabinet over, whatever happens. I accept the government position as it is.

"On balance I support it. There are some advantages to not having a bank holiday."

He said he had been into school to see his three children celebrate St David's Day. "I've been there a few times to watch them dancing, singing and stuff."

"I suspect had they not been in school, rather than celebrating this wonderful part of Welsh culture and enjoying a little bit of the language and the dancing, there might have been a tendency to flop around on the sofa and mess around with the PlayStation.

"I'd much rather they'd be celebrating Welsh culture."