Asked by: Peter Bottomley (Conservative - Worthing West)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, how much has been spent on architectural costs for the proposed Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre in Victoria Tower Gardens to date; how much is committed to be spent in future; and if he will make an estimate of the cost for architectural services if the proposals are enacted.
Answered by Simon Hoare - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The department has spent £4,156,379.80 to date on architectural services for the Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre programme, including £638,000 on architectural services for the planning inquiry held in 2020. The department is forecasting future spend on architectural services of between £1.6 million and £1.9 million, taking into account estimates of inflation caused by delays to the programme.
Officials meet regularly with representatives of the design team, and met Ron Arad, the designer of the Holocaust Memorial on 6 July 2023. Officials keep the Secretary of State updated on the project overall.
Asked by: Peter Bottomley (Conservative - Worthing West)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, when (a) he and (b) officials in his Department last met the architect of the proposed Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre in Victoria Tower Gardens.
Answered by Simon Hoare - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The department has spent £4,156,379.80 to date on architectural services for the Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre programme, including £638,000 on architectural services for the planning inquiry held in 2020. The department is forecasting future spend on architectural services of between £1.6 million and £1.9 million, taking into account estimates of inflation caused by delays to the programme.
Officials meet regularly with representatives of the design team, and met Ron Arad, the designer of the Holocaust Memorial on 6 July 2023. Officials keep the Secretary of State updated on the project overall.
Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, how much the UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation spent on equality and diversity training in the 2022-23 financial year.
Answered by Jacob Young - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
On 2 October, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced a value for money audit of all EDI (Equality, Diversity and Inclusion) spending in the Civil Service.
The audit will dovetail with the public sector productivity review, aiming at delivering a leaner, more efficient government. The audit forms part of our drive to improve productivity across the public sector by driving down waste and improving performance.
The findings and actions of the audit will be announced by the Chancellor in the Autumn.
Asked by: Baroness Deech (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask His Majesty's Government what are the planned contents of each exhibition room in the proposed Holocaust Memorial Learning Centre in Victoria Tower Gardens.
Answered by Baroness Swinburne - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
Cost estimates for excavation at the chosen site are commercially sensitive and not suitable for publication at this time. No estimates have been made for locating the Learning Centre at a hypothetical site.
Information about the Learning Centre's content was presented at the public inquiry and is available on the Westminster City Council website: westminster.gov.uk/sites/default/files/cd_8.9_proof_of_evidence_of_stephen_greenberg_1.pdf .
Asked by: Baroness Deech (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the cost of excavation in Victoria Tower Gardens to create space for the proposed Learning Centre associated with the Holocaust Memorial; and what savings in costs would be made if the Learning Centre were located in an existing building in the area.
Answered by Baroness Swinburne - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
Cost estimates for excavation at the chosen site are commercially sensitive and not suitable for publication at this time. No estimates have been made for locating the Learning Centre at a hypothetical site.
Information about the Learning Centre's content was presented at the public inquiry and is available on the Westminster City Council website: westminster.gov.uk/sites/default/files/cd_8.9_proof_of_evidence_of_stephen_greenberg_1.pdf .
Asked by: Baroness Deech (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking in response to the draft recommendation of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee Report Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage, published on 4 July, which recommends reconsideration of their proposal to build a Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre in Victoria Tower Gardens.
Answered by Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
We take our responsibilities under the UNESCO World Heritage Convention seriously and look forward to discussing the report at the World Heritage Committee meeting in September.
My Department will continue to work with the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities and The Royal Parks to ensure that the open space and heritage of Victoria Tower Gardens are preserved for future generations, and that the proposed Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre maintains the Outstanding Universal Value of the Palace of Westminster and Westminster Abbey including Saint Margaret’s Church World Heritage Site.
Asked by: Lord Hylton (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask His Majesty's Government how tall the proposed structure for the Holocaust Memorial in Victoria Tower Gardens will be; and whether it will exceed the height of the existing Buxton Memorial.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
Page 66 of the Design and Access Statement Part 1, which was submitted to the public inquiry and is available on the Westminster City Council website, shows that the memorial will be 10 metres high; and lower than the Buxton Memorial, which is 13.5 metres high, westminster.gov.uk.
No existing large trees will have to be felled to make way for the Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre.
Asked by: Lord Hylton (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many existing large trees would have to be felled to make way for the proposed Holocaust Memorial in Victoria Tower Gardens.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
Page 66 of the Design and Access Statement Part 1, which was submitted to the public inquiry and is available on the Westminster City Council website, shows that the memorial will be 10 metres high; and lower than the Buxton Memorial, which is 13.5 metres high, westminster.gov.uk.
No existing large trees will have to be felled to make way for the Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre.
Asked by: Baroness Deech (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Statement by Baroness Scott of Bybrook on 28 June forecasting the cost for completion of the proposed Holocaust Memorial in Victoria Tower Gardens as £138.8 million (HLWS875), what estimate they have made of the cost at the likely date of completion, whether they will require the charitable contribution to rise to meet the original one-third of the cost, what undertakings they have received so far about charitable contributions, and what plans they have for continuing to fund Holocaust education.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
Our estimate of costs at the likely date of completion and our current estimate of charitable donations are set out in the Written Ministerial Statement.
The Government is committed to continuing to support and fund Holocaust education. The Department for Education (DfE) has provided over £5.9 million since 2021 to support the Holocaust Educational Trust with their Lessons from Auschwitz programme, with additional funding of £500,000 from the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) to extend the programme to students in Higher Education; in the same period DfE has provided £1.5 million to the UCL Institute of Education’s Centre for Holocaust Education.
In addition DLUHC has supported a broad range of activities across the country aimed at increasing understanding of the Holocaust and its impact on different communities. Recent projects include:
Asked by: Lord Lee of Trafford (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask His Majesty's Government how long they expect the construction of the proposed Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre in Victoria Tower Gardens will take; and what proportion of those Gardens they estimate will be occupied by the Centre (1) during construction, and (2) on completion.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
The construction phase is expected to last around three years. Provision will be made to ensure as much of Victoria Tower Gardens as possible is open to users during construction works.
The design uses around 7.5 per cent of the area of Victoria Tower Gardens.