Today is Holocaust Memorial Day and one of the significant supporters is the charity “Holocaust Memorial Day Trust” which provides information throughout the year. They have published a piece which is available here Two of our local MPs have commented on X, formerly twitter, Peter Bottomley a Conservative MP for West Worthing and Caroline Lucas  the Green MP for Brighton Pavilion. Subsequently Peter Kyle the Labour MP for Hove has raised it a few minutes ago, so I have included his comments below but he is not shown in the image! Several other MPs have mentioned it in Parliament last week across a range of different events. There were two Holocaust Memorial Day events on Thursday and the Prime Minister introduced it to his event on Prime Minister’s Question Time on Wednesday and several MPs responded. Last week many MPs raised the importance of Holocaust Memorial Day in Parliament Fiona Bruce, Catherine West, Jim Shannon, David Rutley, Brendan O’Hara, Sarah Owen, Patrick Grady, Andrew Mitchell, Lucy Powell, Deidre Brock, Peter Bottomley and Penny Mordaunt. Here is the opening item from the ‘Holocaust Memorial Day Trust’.

Today is Holocaust Memorial Day (HMD) – the international day on 27 January to remember the 6 million Jews murdered during the Holocaust, alongside the millions of people murdered under Nazi persecution of other groups and during more recent genocides in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia and Darfur.

HMD is marked on this date to commemorate the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, the largest Nazi concentration and death camp.

At a time when levels of antisemitism (anti-Jewish hatred) and anti-Muslim hatred are rising across the UK, Holocaust Memorial Day is an opportunity for people from different backgrounds and communities to come together, to engage and take action for a better future.

HMD 2024 is being marked in libraries, schools, prisons, workplaces and a range of other spaces. Read on to find out what has been happening this week for HMD, and how you can get involved.

Peter Bottomley: Today we recognise #HolocaustMemorialDay. Six million were brutally murdered. Five million men and women alongside over a million children. I welcome the emphasis that the Holocaust Commission has put on education, followed up by words from the UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation.

Caroline Lucas: I’ve signed the @HolocaustUK Book of Remembrance to mark #HolocaustMemorialDay Today, more than ever, it’s vital to stand up against anti-Semitism, racism & hate in all its forms – and ensure that future generations do not forget @HMD_UK @HolocaustUK

Peter Kyle: This week I signed the #HolocaustMemorialDay book of remembrance. Having been on two visits with @HolocaustUK I’ve learned the importance of striving to learn the lessons from history’s darkest time.