In January 2014, the then Prime Minister David Cameron launched the cross-party Holocaust Commission to examine what more should be done in Britain to ensure that the memory of the Holocaust is preserved and that the lessons it teaches are never forgotten. The Commission recommended that a "striking" new Memorial should be constructed in a "prominent central London location" to show the UK’s commitment to remembering the Holocaust, with a world class Learning Centre using "cutting edge technology" 1 . In January 2015, the Prime Minister accepted the Commission’s recommendations and committed the Government to establish a new national Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre.
	The Holocaust Memorial will be a focal point for national remembrance of the Holocaust, dedicated to the six million Jewish men, women and children who were murdered and all other victims of the Nazis and their collaborators. The Learning Centre’s exhibition will explore the part played by Britain’s Parliament and democratic institutions in response to the persecution of the Jewish people and other groups both at the time and subsequently. It will help people understand the way the lessons of the Holocaust apply more widely, including to other genocides.
	Following an extensive search for suitable sites, Victoria Tower Gardens was recommended to the Government as the most fitting site as its historical, emotional and political significance substantially outweighed all other locations. The Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre was also seen to be in keeping with other memorials sited in the Gardens representing democratic struggles for equality and justice. Victoria Tower Gardens is Crown Land for which the Department for Culture, Media and Sport hold the title. The Government accepted the recommendation and announced Victoria Tower Gardens as the chosen location for the Memorial on 27 January 2016 to mark Holocaust Memorial Day.
	Following an international competition, the winning design for the Memorial and co-located Learning Centre was announced in October 2017 2 . The design was chosen because it met an essential challenge of the brief by being visually arresting yet showing sensitivity to its location and context. The winning design was further developed to meet the requirements of the chosen site, and to ensure that the new features and landscaping improvements will benefit all users of the gardens.
	The Government’s intention is that a permanent independent body should be given responsibility for the maintenance of the Memorial and the operation of the Learning Centre, as recommended by the Prime Minister’s Commission in Britain’s Promise to Remember. The Governing Documents for the operating body will clearly establish that the educational purpose of the Learning Centre will be education about the Holocaust and about antisemitism.
Policy background