THE bank holiday weekend certainly delivered with fantastic weather, and doing exactly what it is meant to do – give everyone a break.

Whether it was enjoying a trip to the beach, a music festival, Notting Hill Carnival or the drama at Leeds in the Ashes people across the country were making the most of it.

On our doorstep too there were so many events across the three-day weekend that people enjoyed it would be hard to list them all.

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But in the back of our mind there is that really depressing thought – the next national holiday is Christmas Day.

Yes here we are in August and the next time the country gets this kind of break will be the festive period, 120 days away.

Which is of course, completely stupid.

The debate about having more is an old one but it has got to the point where it needs changing.

The arguments against are often made by politicians, economists and businesses who point to figures that each bank holiday costs the economy around £2 billion.

Well guess what, as the old saying goes, not everything is about money.

An overworked workforce, working longer hours than ever before and often extra unpaid, should have time to recharge.

They can spend more time with their families, enjoying life outside of work and then come back in a good mindset and be more productive.

The other far more important stat overlooked by economists is that compared with countries around the world, we have far less national holidays.

Countries in the EU have an average of 12 a year, Northern Ireland has 10 and some countries even have 15.

In England we have just the eight.

When you hear it debated there are those who shrug their shoulders and say "yeah but that's how it is, we don't live in those countries".

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Some also say 'I would prefer to choose my days off' - not getting the point that if done right, you will still get the same amount of holiday entitlement with the added bonus of extra days off.

A new bank holiday in the autumn would give people something to look forward to, and spread them out.

The problem is if politicians – the ones with the power to act – suggest introducing more, they get accused of using it as a cheap way to get elected.