A Bath and North East Somerset based organisation has renewed its call on the government to make Holocaust Denial a crime in the UK.
This is in response to the heightened increase in antisemitic hate crimes and violence against Jews, both here in the UK and around the world.
Denial of the Holocaust is currently an arrestable and punishable offence in 17 European counties, as well as in Canada and Israel. In Canada the punishment is up to two years in prison, whilst in both Italy and Germany it’s up to five years.
The European Holocaust of the 1930’s and 1940’s is one of the most documented genocides in history.
Over 6 million Jews were sent to extermination camps and gas chambers before and during the War. By 1945, 65% of Europe’s Jewish population has been wiped out – at least 2 out of every 3 Jews on the continent had been killed.
As well as the Jewish community, other minority groups were also targeted and murdered by the Nazis, including members of the LGBT community, socialists, Jehovah’s Witnesses, disabled people, Slavs, Freemasons, Black Europeans, liberals and gypsies.
Nathan Hartley is Director of the Bath & North East Somerset (B&NES) Faith Foundation and has written to the Prime Minister and Home Secretary calling for legislation to be brought forward that would add Holocaust Denial to the statute books. He said:
“Making denial of the Holocaust a crime in the UK is long overdue, and with the 81st anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau just a few weeks away there is no more an important time than now to make Holocaust Denial illegal in our country.
It would also show the strength of the government’s determination to root out antisemitism in Britain, something that the Prime Minister has spoken strongly about on several occasions.
The 27th January 2026 will mark the 81st anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau by allied forces.
International Holocaust Memorial Day is observed on this day each year to remember the horrors of what happened under the Nazi regime. It’s also a poignant time for us all, whatever our race, religion, creed or nationality to collectively re-commit to ensure that such crimes never happen again.”
Holocaust deniers, also known as ‘Historical Revisionists’, attempt to claim that either the Holocaust didn’t happen (despite the overwhelming historical and factual evidence) or its scale wasn’t as impactful as we are led to believe.
The persecution and mass murder of Jews during the Holocaust was deeply rooted in antisemitism – the hatred, dislike, and abuse (both direct and indirect) of the Jewish people purely because of their race and/or religion.
Nathan added: “Unfortunately, today, both in the UK and across the world, some 81 years since the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau (the largest Nazi death camp) and the end of the Second World War we still see and experience antisemitism in our communities.
One of its most extreme and perverse forms is that of ‘Holocaust denial’ – an antisemitic conspiracy theory that asserts that the Nazi genocide of Jews is a fabrication or exaggeration.
It’s time now for the United Kingdom to follow suit and join with the other countries around the world who have legislated against denial of the Holocaust. Such crimes should never be allowed to happen in our country.”
As well as 10 Downing Street and the Home Office, several Members of Parliament have also been written to asking for their support for the campaign.
The B&NES Faith Foundation will be keeping readers updated on the campaign through regular email updates. To subscribe, send a message to info@bathnesfaithfoundation.org.uk
