A European Country Wants to Get Rid of 2 Public Holidays

As part of a new economic plan, one European leader has proposed eliminating two of his country's national holidays, and surprisingly, the idea is not going over well.

French Prime Minister François Bayrou's latest budget plans includes the suggestion of doing away with two public holidays, according to the Washington Post. The proposal has drawn the ire of political leaders on both sides of the aisle, with the right-wing populist National Rally party calling it a “real provocation" of French workers and one far-left official calling for the government to be censured because of the recommendation.

The bipartisan reaction is set to put Bayrou on a "collision course" with lawmakers when they return to work this fall, claims Mujtaba Rahman, managing director for Europe at the Eurasia Group.

Bayrou, who has been in office for seven months, contends that eliminating the holidays will bring in an additional 44 billion euros "simply because businesses, shops, the civil service, and the nation will work, and our production will improve.” 

France is currently operating at a "spiraling public debt" that Bayrou hopes to have under control by 2029. 

The country has 11 national holidays. Bayrou has suggested getting rid of Easter Monday and Victory Day, which is celebrated on May 8 and marks the defeat of Nazi Germany.

However, the 74-year-old leader has indicated he is open to other ideas, though we're guessing that his government constituents and the citizens of France are not willing to play ball. 

It's worth noting that France's total of public holidays isn't that abnormal compared to its peers. According to the BBC, the French have the same number of national days off as the United States, Germany and the Netherlands and only one more holiday than Ireland and Denmark.

Slovakia has the most holidays, with 15, while England, Wales, and the Netherlands are tied for the fewest, with 8.