§ Mr. DismoreTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on preparations for Holocaust Memorial Day 2002. [2702]
§ Angela EagleA Home Office-led Strategic Group has been developing guidance and plans for next year's commemoration, building on the successful foundations of the first United Kingdom Holocaust Memorial Day last January. The Strategic Group includes representatives from a wide range of Government Departments and Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs).
A working group chaired by the Home Office is taking forward the planning and delivery of the 2002 national event, liaising with the BBC who produced and televised the first national ceremony last January.
Updated guidance for local authorities and a wide range of voluntary and community groups on ways they can mark the day is being produced by a working group chaired by the Holocaust Adviser to the Local Government Association and involving a number of representatives of NGOs with experience and expertise in Holocaust remembrance and wider diversity issues.
The Holocaust education resource pack launched last November and intended for use by schools and others is currently being reviewed by a Department for Education and Skills led working group, consisting of NGOs with experience and expertise in Holocaust education and research. Around 30,000 of these well received packs have already been issued to about 23,000 schools.
The Strategic Group is devising a communication strategy for the promotion and delivery of the 2002 commemoration. It is envisaged that there will be a single launch date in September for all Holocaust Memorial Day promotional material. Details of relevant activities and supporting guidance will be placed onto the dedicated website www.holocaustmemorialday.gov.uk.
I would like to encourage all hon. Members to support and encourage activities in their constituencies to mark the 2nd United Kingdom Holocaust Memorial Day. The day is relevant to all of us. Its focus is on learning the lessons of the Holocaust and other more recent atrocities that raise similar issues.
A key aim of the day is to convey the commemoration's relevance to contemporary issues of racism and victimisation and promote a democratic and tolerant society that respects and celebrates diversity and is free of the evils of prejudice. This will be reflected in all of the related guidance and plans to mark Holocaust Memorial Day next January.