Happy Holidays?

This might have come from a Blairite think tank (not, it must be said, a Brownite one), but it was David Cameron who had vehicles tour Ealing Southall proclaiming in various South Asian languages that Muslim, Hindu and Sikh festivals were to be made public holidays by the Tories.

Then that party’s “Quality of Life Commission” (don’t laugh, it’s real) published a report advocating that “local communities” be given the power to designate three public holidays in their respective localities. In other words, the Tories are going to go around Asian areas at the next Election making this same promise all over again, adjusted according to how Muslim, Hindu or Sikh the particular constituency, ward or addressee happens to be. And it looks as if Labour might do the same. (The Lib Dems have doubtless been doing this sort of thing for years, because they will say absolutely anything according to how this or that the particular constituency, ward or addressee happens to be.)

After this, what else are these unspecified “local communities” going to decide? Who are they, exactly? I think we all know that they are the great and the good of the local mosque, mandir or gurdwara. Getting decide this, and then a whole lot more, is to be their price for getting out the vote, sometimes consisting of nothing more than reminding their mates to fill in postal ballot papers the right way on behalf of their entire households. These situations will easily perpetuate themselves, since people will move, not just from around the country, but from around the world, to live in these little Caliphates, Hindutvas and Khalistans.

Instead, Saint George’s Day, Saint Andrew’s Day, Saint David’s Day and Saint Patrick’ Day should all be made public holidays throughout the United Kingdom, along with the real Whit Monday and those festivals observed as such in both Protestant and Catholic parts of Europe, all instead of our current pointless celebrations of the mere fact that the banks are on holiday. Is there any party promising this? Yes, there is.