The national sense of gloom that seems to be weighing down the whole country suddenly appeared to have lifted following the announcement of the wedding of HRH Prince William with Ms. Catherine Middleton this coming April at the Westminster Abbey.

Prime Minister David Cameron promptly announced an extra bank holiday would be granted in light of the wedding, enabling the population to participate on the occasion. This effectively reduced the business days between April 22 - May 2 to only three, as the preceding weekend’s Easter would be replaced on the following Monday and the May Day holiday is on the next Monday.

That decision however, despite its obvious intent, was met with criticism by a majority of small business owners, who felt that they were being penalized unnecessarily, as the extra holiday compels them to pay their workers in full while losing an extra revenue day. In addition, there is also an increase in the number of leave application for the three working days in the middle of the eleven day period which would effectively shut down their operation for the whole stretch.

The Confederation of British Industry meanwhile, has released statistics claiming that the economy would be hit with a £6 billion bill during the period in question. There are also concern that the government has been forced to spend a substantial sum of money to provide the manpower for security and crowd control for the nuptials procession, a 2.25 kilometers journey from the Buckingham Palace to the abbey, which is estimated to cost upwards of £50 million.

On the flip side of the coin, many are optimistic that the event would be catalyst for economic recovery in view of the multiple income streams it would generate, specifically on the retail and tourism front. Retail research specialist, Verdict, projected that memorabilia sales alone is expected to bring in over £600 million, while the annual royalty-related tourism, which averages £500 million annually, is expected to double this year.

Of course, there is also the matter of the 2012 Olympics which London will be hosting. The massive media coverage that the royal wedding will received can only be positive for the games in terms of attracting tourists for the event, a fact that was echoed by Visit Britain, the British tourism board. Their spokesman, Paul Eastham, was quoted as saying, “Our culture and heritage reputation is very strong around the world. At the heart of that lies the monarchy. People like to be on the spot when historic events happen, and likely to produce a very positive additional premium on what we normally see".

The last high profile wedding of the land occurred 30 years ago, involving the current groom’s father and late mother, HRH Prince Charles and Diana, Princess of Wales respectively. At the time, tourist numbers almost doubled for the year, and it was attributed solely to the royal wedding, making a mockery of the concern expressed by some over the government’s spending of £30 million for the wedding. A similar effect this time around could see the wedding outstripping the Olympic Games itself in terms of revenue.

Notwithstanding any of the above, the simple act of celebrating the marriage of the country’s future King is sure to raise the spirits of the nation and provide a much needed moral encouragement that is sorely needed.