UP TO two million workers, including many women and people from ethnic minorities, are to receive an extra eight days’ paid holiday within the next three years.

In spite of warnings from business that the changes will mean heavy additional costs, Tony Blair announced that legislation preventing employers counting bank holidays as part of annual leave will be introduced soon.

In what will be seen as a sweetener for the next general election, workers are to get 28 days’ paid leave by October 2009 — including for the first time the eight bank holidays, instead of the current 20 days. Four of the extra days will come into force in October next year, with the other four being introduced either from October 2008 or 2009.

Labour legislated to give everyone the right to four weeks of annual leave in 1998. That meant that two million lower paid workers got paid holiday for the first time. But there are still nearly two million who have to take bank holidays from their leave entitlement. Jim Fitzpatrick, the Employment Relations Minister, said yesterday: “The Government is determined to put this right and ensure they get the extra leave they deserve.

“Paid holiday leave is essential to allow people work-life balance. Many businesses already offer more paid holiday than the statutory four weeks, recognising that it can help keep staff motivated and loyal to the company.”

Mr Blair confirmed the proposal at the GMB general union conference in Blackpool, where he came under pressure over his record and faced accusations that he had alienated traditional supporters. The CBI has accepted that the changes will happen. But John Cridland, its deputy director-general, said that they would impose substantial costs on some businesses, and it was important they were phased in over time.

“The cost to business when statutory holiday entitlement was increased from three to four weeks was £2.3 billion. The eight extra days should be phased in gradually starting no earlier than 2007,” he said.

Mr Blair passionately defended the Government’s record in the face of tough questions from trade union activists and claims that traditional Labour supporters were feeling disillusioned and betrayed. The final questioner told Mr Blair that he had alienated traditional supporters and asked him when he was going to start engaging more with ordinary people rather than big business.

Mr Blair replied that his Government had done much to improve the lives of working people and families and said that the only reason the party had come to power was because it enjoyed a broad coalition of support.

He told the conference he knew that there were many more things the Government had to do, but he insisted that much had been achieved in the past nine years. He said that for the first time in 50 years Britain had the highest employment and lowest unemployment of any major country in the world.

After a ten-minute opening address, Mr Blair faced 50 minutes of questions on a series of issues ranging from privatisation, pensions and jobs, to the war in Iraq.

He refused to answer one delegate who asked when he was going to step down and whether Gordon Brown’s leadership would be any different from his own. He defended the spread of city academies, making it clear that he had no intention of changing his education policies.

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