80th Anniversary of Victory in Europe and Victory over Japan

Baroness Laing of Elderslie Excerpts

Friday 9th May 2025 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Laing of Elderslie (Con)]

My Lords, it is a great pleasure to follow the noble Baroness, Lady Amos, who made some very important points. It is a privilege to take part in this debate.

Like most Members of your Lordships’ House, I came into this world long after VE Day and have no recollection of 80 years ago. However, I have a vivid recollection of 30 years ago, when we celebrated the 50th anniversary of VE Day. I remember so well what it meant to my father, who was then only a few months away from the end of his life. It meant so much to him to know that, 50 years after he and his friends came back from a war in which he had fought from day one—from 1939 until 1946—the country and the world were remembering what they did and why it mattered.

My father used to impress upon us as children, “You must remember what happened. You must remember why it happened”. He would say to me, “You must know about this, because you must make sure that it does not happen again”. I am delighted to hear what the Minister has said this morning, because it echoes those sentiments of “Never let it happen again”.

Yesterday in Westminster Abbey, there was a moment when certain words brought a tear to the eyes of strong men. They were not the words of a general or an admiral, not even the words of Winston Churchill, but the words of the forces’ sweetheart, Vera Lynn:

“There’ll be bluebirds over

The white cliffs of dover

Tomorrow

Just you wait and see ...

There’ll be bluebirds over

The white cliffs of dover

Tomorrow …

When the world is free”.

The Minister rightly mentioned that the victory of 80 years ago was the victory of the nation as a whole. There are memorials all over this country to brave servicemen and brilliant generals and admirals. There is no memorial to Vera Lynn. I am trying my best to carry the torch of the Dame Vera Lynn memorial campaign, not just because my father was one of those who adored the forces’ sweetheart; not just because I was brought up on a series of albums called “Hits of the Blitz”, “More Hits of the Blitz”, “The Best Hits of the Blitz” et cetera; but also because of a promise I made to Sir David Amess, my late colleague in the House of Commons, who started this campaign several years ago to raise the money for a memorial to Dame Vera Lynn. I promised Sir David that I would do what I could to help him in his efforts. You will remember that he was brutally murdered in the course of his duties as a Member of Parliament, so I feel a duty to carry on the work that he started.

A place for the memorial has been identified in Dover. Most of the funds for this wonderful memorial have been raised and the memorial is in production. It is not a boring old statue, but a rather wonderful bronze memorial encompassing not just one person but the many whose efforts we praise today, as so many people have said. However, more money is needed to finish the work that Sir David Amess started on the memorial to Dame Vera Lynn. So I am making an unashamed plea to the Minister, to your Lordships and, through your Lordships, to a wider audience. Much money has been raised by small donations from people who care, but £350,000 is still needed to put up a memorial to the forces’ sweetheart, to the person who embodied the spirit the Minister mentioned, of the will to carry on. Please help.