Chancellor pledges £2m for Holocaust education as she praises Lily Ebert in budget speech
Rachel Reeves singles out the work of the Holocaust Educational Trust as she tells MPs it is vital survivors testimonies 'are not lost and are preserved for the future'
Rachel Reeves has paid tribute to Holocaust survivor Lily Ebert in her budget speech as she committed a further £2million for further education on the Shoah.
Delivering the first ever budget by a female chancellor, and the first by a Labour government in over 14 years, Reeves signalled out the work of the Holocaust Education Trust in her speech to MPs in the Commons on Wednesday.
She said:”I would like to pay tribute to Lily Ebert, the Holocaust survivor and educator who passed away aged 100 earlier this year.
“I am today committing a further £2millon for Holocaust education next year, so that charities like the Holocaust Education Trust continue their work to ensure that these vital testimonies are not lost and are preserved for the future.”
Keir Starmer, sitting next to the chancellor nodded in agreement, as MPs voiced their approval for the announcement.
HET later said the extra funding was ” fantastic news.”
In a post on X the charity added:” We are hugely grateful to the Chancellor for recognising our work. We are at a crucial juncture as Holocaust survivors become fewer and frailer, and the importance of ensuring their testimony is preserved and accessible for generations to come cannot be underestimated.
“With the surge in antisemitism today and as the Holocaust moves from living history to history, this work is vital and urgent.”
Reeves said a £40 billion increase in taxes were required in the budget after finding a £22bn “black hole” in the public finances she claimed had been covered up by the Tories, which she warned would have persisted over the next five years without immediate action.
But she said she was raising spending on the NHS and on state schools. Reeves confirmed VAT would be introduced for private schools in January.
There was a big increase in employers’ national insurance contributions, which will go up by 1.2 percentage points, to 15%, from April next year.
Thresholds will also come down from £9,100 per year to £5,000.
Reeves said the “difficult” tax-raising choices were required to stabilise the public finances after receiving a dire economic inheritance from the Conservatives.
“To begin a decade of national renewal. To fix the foundations and deliver change, through responsible leadership in the national interest. That is our task, and I know we can achieve it,” she said.
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
