Workers could be suffering St Patrick's Day hangover

Britons who celebrated St Patrick's Day yesterday may be unable to work today, research by Abbey has discovered.

Around 300,000 people will be too hungover to go to the office as four million Brits joined in the Irish celebrations, the survey revealed.

One in ten of those questioned by the bank said that they would be drinking alcohol as part of the festivities.

However, Abbey stated employees who are unable to go to work could cost the UK economy £27m as the average daily wage of a worker is £90.40 a day.

'Small businesses depend greatly on their staff and so even small amounts of time lost can really impact on their profitability,' Paula Ickinger of Abbey Business Banking noted.

The 'detrimental' effects of taking time off after a night of drinking could also reflect badly on an employee, she said.

Irish Prime Minister, Bertie Ahern, told partygoers 'not to go over the top' when celebrating St Patrick's Day yesterday.