Holocaust Memorial Would be ‘Tempting’ Target for Terrorists, Says Lord Carlile

Undated handout file artist's impression showing the entrance of the proposed Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre in London. (UK Holocaust Memorial via PA)

A former independent reviewer of terrorism legislation, Lord Carlile, has said a proposed Holocaust Memorial in a park next to the Houses of Parliament was likely to be a “tempting” target for Islamic extremist and far-right terrorists.

The Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre was first proposed by the then Prime Minister David Cameron in 2014 and Victoria Tower Gardens—which is directly to the south of the Palace of Westminster—was chosen as the location, despite opposition led by London Historic Parks and Gardens Trust.

But Lord Carlile—former Liberal Democrat MP Alex Carlisle, who is himself Jewish—said he was not convinced Victoria Tower Gardens was the right place for the memorial and learning centre.

He told The Telegraph, “There is a real and present and serious prospect that the site would be regarded as iconic and as tempting by both Islamist and right-wing extremists given its proximity to this Palace and to the lack of any secure or meaningful perimeter and its close proximity both to busy public highways and the river.”

Lord Carlile said Victoria Tower Gardens may have to be treated as a “high-level security risk” with visitors subjected to electronic body searches to prevent terrorist attacks.

‘Recent Events in Israel-Palestine Cannot be Ignored’

Lord Carlile, who runs a security consultancy with former MI6 chief Sir John Scarlett, said: “I suggest that recent events in Israel-Palestine cannot be ignored. They have heightened the danger of action against perceived Jewish interests in London and sadly may have diluted public support … for having such a memorial and centre so close to the Palace of Westminster.”

There has been an exponential rise in anti-Semitic attacks in London since Hamas launched attacks into Israel on Oct. 7, triggering Israel’s ground offensive into the Gaza strip.

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The Architects Journal reported last year the cost of the project has risen from £89 million in 2019 to £139 million, the majority of which will come from government funding.

Planning permission was granted in 2021 followed by an inquiry chaired by a planning inspector but it later emerged that under the 1900 London County Council Act, nothing could be built on Victoria Tower Gardens.

A parliamentary select committee is now working on a Holocaust Memorial Bill, which would supplant the 1900 legislation and allow the proposal to go ahead.

An artist's impression showing the aerial view of the proposed Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre in London. (UK Holocaust Memorial/PA)

Victoria Tower Gardens was first opened to the public in 1914 and on Wednesday, Brian Doctor, KC, counsel for the London Historic Parks and Gardens Trust, told the select committee the gardens had been given to the state 100 years ago as a public park and should not be given away for a “moment of genius.”

Opponents Trying to Remove Learning Centre From Memorial

Sally Prothero, an award-winning landscape architect and trustee with the trust, gave a presentation to the committee, which included a slideshow, and she said her calculations—made using the AutoCAD architecture software—suggested the proposed memorial and learning centre would take up 31 percent of the park, compared to the 7.5 percent claimed by its proponents.

Chris Katkowski, KC, a barrister instructed by the promoters of the memorial, asked her what she wanted the select committee to do, considering planning permission had already been granted.

She said the trust wanted the Holocaust Memorial Bill to be amended so the underground learning centre was removed from the project and sited elsewhere.

Later, Hal Moggridge, another trustee, pointed out the memorial was currently proposed for an area close to an existing children’s playground.

He said, “Any Holocaust memorial, in my opinion, should be kept well away from the happiness of playing children.”

This Saturday is Holocaust Memorial Day, when the Nazi genocide of six million Jews during the Second World War is commemorated globally.

Joan Salter, who was just three months old when Hitler’s forces invaded her native Belgium in 1940, said the Hamas attacks on Oct. 7 had “polarised” London’s Jewish and Muslim communities, just as the terrorists intended.

Mrs. Salter, 84, told PA news agency, “Instead of people realising what Hamas did, the hatred has turned either against the Jews or there’s a lot of Islamophobia, and that polarises our two communities.”

PA Media contributed to this report.