Canada declares Queen Elizabeth II's funeral a federal holiday

Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral will be a federal holiday, according to the government.

The state funeral will take place at Westminster Abbey on Monday, September 19, at 11 am local time.

In a press conference on Tuesday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau confirmed that they have chosen to move forward with a federal holiday on Monday.

“We will be working with the provinces and the territories to try to see that we’re aligned on this. There are still a few details to be worked out,” he said.

Canada follows the lead of other Commonwealth countries like Australia and New Zealand, which have both announced public holidays on September 22 and 26, respectively.

The UK has also declared the day of the Queen’s funeral a one-time only, bank holiday.

The State Funeral of Her Majesty The Queen will take place at Westminster Abbey on Monday 19th September.

Prior to the State Funeral, The Queen will Lie-in-State in Westminster Hall for four days, to allow the public to pay their respects.

— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) September 10, 2022

So, who gets the day off?

The prime minister confirmed that the government would be letting federal employees know that they will not work on the day of the funeral.

However, provinces and territories have not confirmed whether they are following suit, leaving 85 to 90% of Canadians waiting to see if they get a holiday.

It has not been clarified whether this is a one-time holiday or a yearly one.

Funeral details

The royal family announced the details of the funeral on Saturday, following the death of the Queen on Thursday, September 8.

As of Tuesday, the coffin is in Edinburgh, where a procession and services were attended by King Charles III and members of the royal family before it is brought from Scotland to England.

The Queen will be brought in a procession from Buckingham Palace to the Palace of Westminster, “where The Queen will Lie-in-State in Westminster Hall until the morning of the State Funeral,” said the royal family.

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The public will be able to pay their respects as she will lie-in-state in Westminster Hall for four days.

Then, on September 19, the day of the state funeral, another procession will bring the Queen’s coffin from the Palace of Westminster to Westminster Abbey.

The Queen died surrounded by the royal family last Thursday at Balmoral Castle in Scotland.

She spent her last days there under medical supervision.

With files from Sarah Anderson