Experts fear the site could be seen as a cult target for Islamists and right-wing extremists
Holocaust memorial planned for park adjacent to Parliament House will pose a “very real risk of terrorism”, a former government terrorism adviser has warned.
Lord Carlisle, a former independent counter-terrorism expert, said the entire royal park, Victoria Tower Gardens, may have to be treated as a “high security risk” as visitors are subject to electronic and body searches to prevent a terrorist attack.
This was because there was a “real and present” prospect that the site would be seen as a cult target for Islamists and right-wing extremists, said Lord Carlisle, whose close relatives were victims of the Holocaust.
He cited anti-Israel demonstrations by pro-Palestinian protesters in London as evidence of possible risks.
His comments come as MPs believe government legislation opens the door to the Holocaust. memorial and learning center in the garden adjacent to the Palace of Westminster.
The site has been controversial since it was chosen by the government, with critics claiming it is too small for the size of the proposed memorial and is itself a popular tourist attraction .
Illustration showing the proposed Holocaust Memorial and Training Center in London. Photo: PA/UK Holocaust Memorial
“[The memorial] poses a very real threat of terrorism,” said Lord Carlisle, who founded a security consultancy with former MI6 chief Sir John Scarlett. “I believe that recent events in Israel and Palestine cannot be ignored.
“They have heightened the danger of action against perceived Jewish interests in London and, unfortunately, may have weakened public support… for having such a memorial and center so close to Palace of Westminster.”
Carlisle gave two examples. The first was the arrest of six people on suspicion of plotting to shut down the London Stock Exchange. The alleged plot was allegedly orchestrated by pro-Palestinian activists.
Secondly, he said, the parliamentary gift shop across the road from the Palace of Westminster recently boarded up all its windows.
“I am absolutely confident that this will be done on the basis of the advice that they should protect themselves from demonstrators and from others who may be viciously concerned about parliament and also anything related to the Holocaust,” he said. .
“There is a real, present and serious prospect that this site will be seen as iconic and tempting to both Islamists and right-wing extremists, given its proximity to this palace and the lack of any secure or significant perimeter, as well as its close proximity to both this palace and this palace. to busy public highways and the river.”
Protesters outside the Royal Courts of Justice in central London Photo: Tom Pilgrim/PA
It comes after MPs heard the proposed memorial The Holocaust outside Parliament will “overwhelm, dominate and overshadow” a separate memorial to slavery.
On Tuesday, the Select Committee on the Holocaust Memorial Bill heard evidence from the Buxton family, who are descendants of Sir Thomas Foxwell Buxton, the anti-slavery activist commemorated at the Buxton Memorial Fountain in Victoria Tower Gardens.
The fountain is memorial to Sir Thomas and the anti-slavery campaigners, which Brian Doctor KK, representing the family, told the hearing would be “overshadowed” by the proposed Holocaust memorial.
Some MPs and Lords think so. seeking the creation of a wider security “border” around Parliament to further protect against any terrorist attacks, potentially extending to Lambeth Bridge, near Lambeth Palace, south of the Palace of Westminster.
Michael Gove's Lawyers Secretary for Leveling Up, which is overseeing the construction, said the issue of security around the Palace and the Holocaust Memorial will be addressed as part of the application for planning permission.
The Holocaust Memorial and Education Center was first proposed in 2015 for preservation
< p>testimonies of British Holocaust survivors and concentration camp liberators, and to commemorate Jewish and other victims of Nazi persecution.
Planning permission was granted in July 2021 for the Victoria Tower site Gardens in central London following a public inquiry and recommendations from planning inspector David Morgan.
The decision was challenged in the High Court by the London Historic Parks and Gardens Trust. , which opposed the building of the center in a small Grade II listed triangular park south of Parliament.
The London County Council (Improvements) Act 1900 required the land to be used as public land parka. The bill intends to update legislation by removing legal obstacles that have prevented the project from proceeding.
It will also give the government the authority to use public funding to build and operate the center. The site also houses an anti-slavery monument.
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