Downing Street has brushed off calls for an extra bank holiday in the wake of the Lionesses’ Euros victory.
The England women’s team will celebrate their victory with a visit to No 10 on Monday evening, followed by an open-top bus parade through central London on Tuesday.
The Lionesses defended their Euros title in a penalty shootout win over Spain in the final in Basel, Switzerland, on Sunday.
The Government had already indicated it was unlikely to heed calls for an extra bank holiday to herald England’s success.
On Monday, the Prime Minister’s official spokesman attempted to make light of calls for the additional day off work.
“If we had a bank holiday every time the Lionesses win we’d never go to work,” he told reporters.
He added: “It is a tribute to the success of the Lionesses. The Prime Minister has said how inspiring their incredible victory was last night, and the team has captured the hearts of the nation.
“We look forward to joining the rest of the country celebrating this incredible win.”
The spokesman pointed to the plans for a parade and the Downing Street reception as part of the Government’s efforts to ensure the team has a warm welcome on their return to the UK.
Bank holidays have a costly impact on the UK economy, and various governments have been reticent to introduce additional public holidays.
Analysis by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport estimated the cost of the additional bank holiday to mark Elizabeth II’s platinum jubilee in June 2022 was £2.4 billion.
Elsewhere, the Prime Minister’s spokesman insisted there was an independent process for nominations for honours, when asked about calls for the team to be recognised for their victory.
However, in a rare show of support from the Government for members of the team to receive nominations, he added: “I hope we’ll see lots of nominations for this incredible winning team.
“Many of them were honoured after their incredible Euros win just three years ago, and everyone can see what an amazing job Sarina (Wiegman) and the team have done for this country in terms of its historic win, and women’s sport more generally.”
Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner will host the Downing Street reception for the England team on Monday night.
Asked if Sir Keir Starmer was disappointed not to be at the event, his spokesman insisted the Prime Minister was “obviously very pleased to be meeting President Trump up in Scotland”.
He added: “I’m sure he (the Prime Minister) will have a chance to celebrate with them in the future as well.”
