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On 26 January 2026 the House of Lords is scheduled to debate a government-sponsored motion to take note of Holocaust Memorial Day. Baroness Taylor of Stevenage, a parliamentary under secretary of state at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, is expected to open the debate on behalf of the government.

The House of Commons is scheduled to hold a debate on Holocaust remembrance on 29 January 2026.[1]

1. What is Holocaust Memorial Day?

Holocaust Memorial Day (HMD) is marked each year on 27 January, the date on which Soviet troops liberated the largest Nazi concentration camp, Auschwitz-Birkenau, in 1945.[2] The Holocaust Memorial Day Trust, a charity established and funded by the UK government to promote and support HMD in the UK, has described the day’s focus as follows:

The Holocaust is central to Holocaust Memorial Day when we remember the 6 million Jewish men, women and children who were murdered, and the millions more murdered under Nazi persecution. We also learn and commemorate where persecution led in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia and Darfur. The Holocaust Memorial Day Trust encourages remembrance in a world scarred by prejudice and systematic, targeted persecution.[3]

HMD was created in 2000 when representatives from 46 governments signed the Stockholm Declaration, which committed signatory states to preserving the memory of those murdered in the Holocaust.[4] The declaration also serves as the founding document of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA), an intergovernmental organisation established to address issues related to the Holocaust and genocide of the Roma. In 2020, on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, ministers from member countries of the IHRA, including the UK, adopted an amended ministerial declaration to underline and renew the commitments made in the earlier declaration.[5]

The United Nations also marks 27 January as an annual International Day of Commemoration to remember the victims of the Holocaust.[6]

2. Theme of Holocaust Memorial Day 2026: ‘Bridging generations’

The theme for HMD 2026 is ‘bridging generations’.[7] The Holocaust Memorial Day Trust has explained the theme is:

[…] a call to action. A reminder that the responsibility of remembrance does not end with the survivors—it lives on through their children, their grandchildren and through all of us.

This theme encourages us all to engage actively with the past: to listen, to learn and to carry those lessons forward. By doing so, we build a bridge between memory and action, between history and hope for the future.[8]

Expanding on the meaning of this year’s theme, the trust added:

As the years pass, we’re growing more distant in time from the Holocaust and from the other, more recent genocides that are commemorated on HMD. That distance brings a risk: that memory fades, that the sharp reality of what happened becomes blurred, abstract or even questioned. ‘Bridging generations’ highlights the crucial role of the next generation in preserving the memory of the Holocaust and carrying it forward. It highlights the power of intergenerational dialogue—of listening to those who came before us and of sharing those stories with those who come after. In doing so, we don’t just preserve memory—we connect it to the present.[9]

3. Commemorative events

The Holocaust Memorial Day Trust organises the UK commemorative ceremony for HMD.[10] It describes this as the “focal point of HMD in the UK” and an event that “brings together the civic, faith and political leadership of the country, alongside survivors of the Holocaust and more recent genocides”. The trust held last year’s ceremony at London’s Guildhall. The trust later said the BBC broadcast of the ceremony was watched by 2 million people in the UK.[11]

In addition to the annual commemorative event, well-known buildings and landmarks across the UK will be lit in purple during the evening of 27 January as part of HMD’s annual ‘Light the darkness’ event.[12] The Holocaust Memorial Day Trust encourages people to light candles in homes and communities as part of a national moment of remembrance scheduled for 8pm that evening.

The Holocaust Memorial Day Trust also provides a range of resources to assist organisations and individuals organise HMD events and activities locally.[13]

4. Read more

Cover image by photoangel on Freepik.

References

  1. HC Hansard, 15 January 2026, col 1089. Return to text
  2. Holocaust Memorial Day Trust, ‘What is Holocaust Memorial Day?’, accessed 19 January 2026. See also: ‘Why mark HMD?’ and ‘Frequently asked questions (FAQs)’, both accessed 19 January 2026. Return to text
  3. Holocaust Memorial Day Trust, ‘What is Holocaust Memorial Day?’, accessed 19 January 2026. See also: ‘About us’ and ‘Learn about the Holocaust and where persecution led in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia and Darfur’, both accessed 19 January 2026. Return to text
  4. Holocaust Memorial Day Trust, ‘The Stockholm Declaration’, accessed 19 January 2026. Return to text
  5. As above. See also: International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, ‘Who we are: Inside the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’, ‘2020 IHRA ministerial declaration’ and ‘United Kingdom’, all accessed 19 January 2026. Return to text
  6. United Nations, ‘Outreach programme on the Holocaust’ and ‘International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust: 27 January’, both accessed 19 January. Return to text
  7. Holocaust Memorial Day Trust, ‘Bridging generations: Theme for 2026’, accessed 19 January 2026. Return to text
  8. Holocaust Memorial Day Trust, ‘Holocaust Memorial Day 2026: Bridging generations—theme paper’, November 2025, p 1. Return to text
  9. As above. Return to text
  10. Holocaust Memorial Day Trust, ‘UK commemorative ceremony’, accessed 19 January 2026. Return to text
  11. Holocaust Memorial Day Trust, ‘Holocaust Memorial Day ceremony seen by 2 million on BBC’, 3 February 2025. Return to text
  12. Holocaust Memorial Day Trust, ‘Light the darkness: Watch and take part’, 10 January 2026. Return to text
  13. Holocaust Memorial Day Trust, ‘Take part in Holocaust Memorial Day’, accessed 19 January 2026; and ‘HMD events around the country’, 11 January 2026. Return to text