Tourism chiefs head for clash with shops over May Day calls

The hot weather and run of four bank holidays has sparked a boom for tourist attractions in recent weeks and led Welcome to Yorkshire’s chief executive, Gary Verity, to back a Government proposal to move the May Day holiday to the autumn to extend the tourism season and bring an economic boost later in the year.

He has urged the Government to give “serious consideration” to simply adding an extra autumn bank holiday to the calendar, but after Ministers ruled out the option as too costly, he backs the idea of moving May Day instead.

But DIY giant B&Q is leading a campaign against any change because May Day is such a money-spinner. It claims a survey of 2,000 people found that 78 per cent wanted to save May Day, while the gardening industry’s Horticultural Trades Association has warned any move would be “an enormous blow”.

Some of Yorkshire’s top attractions are also opposed to the move, or not convinced of the case for change. York’s Jorvik Centre said moving the holiday would not make a significant difference and it was “in no rush for it to change”, while the National Trust is also “unlikely” to support an overhaul.

Ministers suggested the idea of moving the May Day holiday in the Tourism Strategy launched earlier this year, although they say they are open-minded. They suggested St George’s Day in April as another possible alternative and will launch a formal consultation later this year.

This week they launched a website asking the public to come forward with any other possible dates.

The debate has been reignited after the recent run of four bank holidays in two weeks – Easter, the Royal wedding and May Day – which saw attractions across

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