Holocaust Memorial Bill

Lord Pickles Excerpts

3rd reading
Tuesday 17th June 2025 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Deech (CB)]

My Lords, one has to congratulate the Minister and the department on their patience and persistence, and indeed perhaps on a record. Rarely can a one-page Bill with three clauses have achieved the potential of doing so much damage to the environment, to local facilities, to restoration and renewal, to security—what a shame that the House did not see fit to follow the wise words of the expert noble Lord, Lord Carlile—as well as damage to the beauty of the locality, to the understanding of antisemitism and Jewish history past and present, to intra-community relations, to the recommendations of the Prime Minister’s 2015 Holocaust Commission, and to the public purse.

Once we are free of the fears of this Government that any alternative is somehow giving in to the antisemitism of which the party was accused a few years ago—that is simply not the case—we will go forward with a planning process that might yet rescue this botched plan. It is not too late to tweak it and build not a monument to death and the Nazis but one dedicated to the need to preserve and understand Jewish life. At a time when a new version of the desire to destroy Jewish life in the Middle East and elsewhere is playing out as we speak, we could have a learning centre that extended to the achievement of the survivors of the Holocaust in building what was a safe haven for Jews: a land of their own. Is it not ironic that this Government are so respectful of 6 million dead but so cavalier about the fate of 7 million of their descendants in Israel right now?

There is indeed much to be learned, not just close to Parliament but inside our debates. We who understand what is at stake will continue to press our case. The fight is not over.

[Lord Pickles (Con)]

My Lords, I thank the Minister for his enormous courtesy and patience, and for being willing to go that extra mile to ensure that everybody gets a fair chance to get their view across. I am very encouraged by his remarks with regard to the noble Lord’s amendment. It is a sensible one, and we need something to ensure it is absolutely clear that this cannot drift into a museum of general genocide.

The Minister spoke about survivors; to me they are represented by just one survivor, Sir Ben Helfgott. He was an enormous inspiration to get this job done. I am sorry that he is no longer with us and will not see it, but I am delighted that his wife, his children and his grandchildren will see this wonderful memorial built.

I am particularly grateful to my noble friend Lady Scott for the way in which she showed equal patience. I think she and the Minister have been the last two people with responsibility for the memorial and learning centre. It was an inspiration to bring the model into the House, so much so that I recall how one of my noble friends demanded that it be brought back again. I think that showed that it was actually quite an attractive model; in particular, the fins are quite attractive.

There has been some misinformation—I am sure unintentional—about who designed the fins, and it was Adjaye, but I express my particular gratitude to Asa Bruno, who was the architect in the architectural practice. As the Minister will know, sadly, that very talented young man died of cancer, leaving behind a young family and a wife. I hope that that family will, in the coming years, come to see that the last project that Asa was involved in was a project of global importance, and will come back and see it with great pride. May his memory be a blessing.