Victoria Tower Gardens was chosen as the most fitting site in terms of its historical, emotional, and political significance and its ability to offer the greatest potential impact and visibility for the project. The planned Holocaust Memorial will commemorate the six million Jewish people and all victims of Nazi persecution, and the accompanying learning centre will address subsequent genocides.

A nationwide public consultation was conducted in 2014 by the Prime Minister's Holocaust Commission, which received almost 2500 responses. The resulting recommendation to establish a new National Memorial to the Holocaust with a co-located education centre, prominently located in central London, was welcomed by all main political parties. The costs of this exercise were not recorded separately.

The cross-party United Kingdom Holocaust Memorial Foundation, which advises Government in taking these recommendations forward, then, over an 18 month period, conducted a search of London for the best possible site for such an important project. More than fifty sites were considered and the Foundation found that by far the most fitting, prominent and powerful location for the new memorial and education centre was alongside parliament in Victoria Tower Gardens, a site owned by Government.

The Foundation is now consulting with local residents, as well as members of the public all around the United Kingdom, on the choice of design team to take the project forward. As with all developments, the project will be subject to the full democratic planning process and all the appropriate consultations.

The Government has committed £50 million towards establishing a new National Holocaust Memorial, learning centre and endowment fund; with an expectation of a further £50 million being raised in donations. The estimated cost of constructing the memorial and learning centre is up to £40 million. Further consideration of the costs associated with the memorial and learning centre will continue over the coming months

In 2014 the Prime Minister’s cross-party Holocaust Commission undertook a nationwide public consultation, receiving more than 2500 responses to its Call for Evidence. This resulted in the Commission recommending the creation of a new National Memorial to the Holocaust and an accompanying Learning Centre to be prominently located in Central London.

Following an extensive search across central London, which included discussions within Government and with property owners and developers across Central London; invitations to respond to a site specification; and a thorough search by property agents CBRE, Victoria Tower Gardens was identified as a possible location for the Memorial.

The Memorial will serve as a reminder of the depths of depravity that a seemingly enlightened society can plunge to if it abandons its democratic values, and the importance of constant vigilance in protecting these values. There could be no more powerful or appropriate location to make such a statement than next to Parliament. As a result, and following consultation with Westminster City Council and The Royal Parks, the UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation, which advises DCLG in this matter, recommended that the Memorial be located in Victoria Tower Gardens. This was announced by the Government in January 2016.

In 2014 the Prime Minister’s cross-party Holocaust Commission undertook a nationwide public consultation, receiving more than 2500 responses to its Call for Evidence. This resulted in the Commission recommending the creation of a new National Memorial to the Holocaust and an accompanying Learning Centre to be prominently located in Central London.

Following an extensive search across central London, which included discussions within Government and with property owners and developers across Central London; invitations to respond to a site specification; and a thorough search by property agents CBRE, Victoria Tower Gardens was identified as a possible location for the Memorial.

The Memorial will serve as a reminder of the depths of depravity that a seemingly enlightened society can plunge to if it abandons its democratic values, and the importance of constant vigilance in protecting these values. There could be no more powerful or appropriate location to make such a statement than next to Parliament. As a result, and following consultation with Westminster City Council and The Royal Parks, the UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation, which advises DCLG in this matter, recommended that the Memorial be located in Victoria Tower Gardens. This was announced by the Government in January 2016.

In January 2015, Government announced that it was accepting all the recommendations of the Prime Minister’s Holocaust Commission. In doing so, Government also committed £50 million as its contribution to total project costs.