Holocaust Memorial Bill

Lord West of Spithead Excerpts

3rd reading
Tuesday 17th June 2025 Lords Chamber

[Lord Inglewood (CB)]

My Lords, I should declare my interest as president of Historic Buildings & Places. I congratulate the Government and all those who took part in the Bill. It was a learning process.

I have over the last 50 years earned my professional qualifications, worked as a professional and worked in other things, and the theme of my life has been land, land use, law and planning. I have to say to the House that, the more the Bill progressed, the more I became convinced that this proposal was overdevelopment and in the wrong place. I do not wish to say any more, other than, with sadness, that this Bill, the Holocaust Memorial Bill, will no doubt shortly be going on the statute. In my view. it is not properly named: it is the Victoria Tower Gardens Destruction Bill.

[Lord West of Spithead (Lab)]

My Lords, I am a simple sailor, but my thoughts are that, when they start work deep in the basement, would they please not use Navy or Army divers to do the work there but ensure that the money is paid by someone else?

[Baroness Scott of Bybrook (Con)]

My Lords, it is a pleasure to rise at Third Reading of this important Bill. I will not restate our position at length, but the Official Opposition support the Bill, which will take us another step closer to delivering on my noble friend Lord Cameron of Chipping Norton’s historic commitment to build a lasting national memorial to the Holocaust.

We have made a solemn commitment never to forget the horrors of the Holocaust and to work to ensure that it will never happen again. Holocaust education is an essential part of our efforts to make good on those promises. It has been the policy of successive Conservative Governments that we need a national Holocaust memorial and learning centre. This has the support of the Holocaust education organisations, including the Holocaust Centre North, the National Holocaust Museum, the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust and the Holocaust Educational Trust.

We were very pleased that the amendment from the noble Lord, Lord Verdirame, was successful on Report. We feel strongly that the noble Lord’s amendment not only improves the Bill but is actually helpful to the Government. It is designed to ensure that the intentions of successive Governments are honoured once the memorial and learning centre have been established. We hope the Minister will be able to reassure us today, although we have heard no reassurance, that the Government will carefully consider the amendment. Can the Minister perhaps go further and tell the House whether he will make the case to his colleagues in government that the amendment should be accepted?

Finally, I would like to thank the Minister for his continued engagement throughout the progress of the Bill. It is a controversial piece of legislation and I am grateful to him for his approach when working with the Official Opposition Front Bench. I would also like to thank his officials, the House authorities who have supported an extremely long Report stage and all noble Lords who have contributed to the scrutiny process of the legislation. On something very personal, I would like to thank Henry in the Opposition office, who has so ably supported me through the passage of the Bill.

Redcar Steelworks

Lord West of Spithead Excerpts

Wednesday 17th May 2023 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Scott of Bybrook (Con)]

No, it is up to the mayor to decide the best people to be on his board. We have seen absolutely no evidence—if there is any, we would like to see it—of corruption, wrongdoing or illegal acts.

[Lord West of Spithead (Lab)]

My Lords, the loss of Redcar was part of the blight on British Steel. Does the Minister agree that perhaps we should put in the orders that have been thought about, but not yet ordered, for a large number of ships and that the steel in the ships being built should be found from within British Steel?

[Baroness Scott of Bybrook (Con)]

I am not going to respond to a question on British Steel, but I can say that public money—quite rightly—has decontaminated the site and taken away all the hazards, and therefore it is now right for modern green technology.

English Language Learning

Lord West of Spithead Excerpts

Monday 27th July 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Greenhalgh]

My Lords, in fact 30 local authorities were successful for funding, and there will be a full evaluation of the programme’s outcomes and impacts. A longitudinal study of longer-term benefits for learners is also planned.

[Lord West of Spithead (Lab) [V]]

My Lords, it is difficult to overestimate how important it is for an individual in this country to read and speak English. The dreadful manslaughter of Police Constable Andrew Harper throws a light on this issue in a slightly different way. The young men convicted, Henry Long, Albert Bowers and Jessie Cole, could not read or write. Their education from the age of 11 was only in the arena of crime, not at school. Does the Minister agree that all British citizens should speak and read our language if they are to thrive and become valued members of society? It is important to the fabric of our nation and their feeling of belonging to this nation. Not giving anyone the opportunity, and making that learning compulsory if necessary, is a failure of our system.

[Lord Greenhalgh]

My Lords, I agree with the noble Lord. The recent census showed that 770,000 people who live in England speak little or no English. We need to work hard to ensure that we provide them with those skills, so that they can benefit fully from life in this country.