Summary and Background to the Act
3.The Act establishes a bank holiday to mark St Andrew’s Day.
4.The Act does this by amendment of paragraph 2 of Schedule 1 to the Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971 (c.80) – which is the part of the 1971 Act that specifies bank holidays in Scotland – in order to insert an additional day.
5.The 1971 Act sets out those days that are bank holidays in England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. It does not require banks (or any other employer) to close on bank holidays. It was brought into place to relieve people of obligations to make payments on such days in the same way that they are not required to do on Christmas Day or Good Friday; and to give power by order to suspend financial and other dealings on specified days, being bank holidays and Saturdays when traditionally the banks would be closed.
6.The 1971 Act does not give statutory rights for staff who work on these days to extra pay or time off on bank holidays, that being a matter of contract or agreement between employer and employee.
7.The bank holidays for Scotland are now:
	New Year’s Day (or in lieu of 1 Jan, if a Saturday or Sunday)
	2 Jan (or in lieu of 2 Jan, if a Saturday or Sunday)
	Good Friday
	Early May Bank Holiday
	Spring Bank Holiday
	Summer Bank Holiday
	St Andrew’s Day (or in lieu of 30 Nov, if a Saturday or Sunday)
	Christmas Day (or in lieu of 25 Dec, if a Sunday)
	Boxing Day (or in lieu of 26 Dec, if a Sunday)