Member

It will be clear that the effect of the amendment would be either to require drastic scaling back of the programme or to place more of the burden of funding on the charitable trust. Neither approach is acceptable. The amendment allows us to reflect on what Clause 1 of the Bill seeks to achieve. Our ambition is to create a national memorial to the Holocaust, with a learning centre capable of helping visitors to understand the enormity of the crime and its relevance to the modern world. We want to place this memorial and learning centre in a prominent position at the heart of our national life. It is not simply to attract many millions of visitors and to stimulate greater awareness and understanding of the Holocaust—although of course those outcomes are highly desirable. Our additional aim is that this national memorial will say something important about ourselves as a nation. It will say that we recognise the unique significance of the Holocaust, which was a determined attempt by a modern state to eliminate the Jewish people; that we want to remember those who suffered under such an appalling tyranny; and that we want our society never to fall into the grip of antisemitism, hatred and evil.