Keir Starmer Reveals ‘Sickness and Desolation’ in Emotional Reflection on Auschwitz Visit

Almost one million Jewish people were killed by the Nazis at a concentration camp in occupied Poland.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said his visit to Auschwitz with his wife, Lady Victoria Starmer, would stay with him “for the rest of my life.” He issued a statement after visiting the camp in Poland on Friday, January 17.

He described standing by the train tracks at Birkenau, saying, “I felt sick and desolate as I tried to grasp the scale of this planned and industrialized murder. A million people were killed here just because they were Jewish.”

Sir Keir emphasized that these atrocities were not just the acts of a few but required the involvement of thousands of ordinary people who helped create this “industry of death.”

Lady Victoria, who is Jewish, also visited the camp. She had previously visited the site on her own the day before. Around 1.3 million people were sent to Auschwitz, including nearly 1.1 million Jewish victims. Of those, 960,000 were killed.

Reflecting on their visit, Sir Keir shared how deeply moved his wife was, even though it was her second visit. He stated, “Time and again, we condemn this hatred and say ‘never again.’ But where is ‘never again’ when antisemitism rises again in the world?”.

He also referred to recent global events, including the Gaza ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, noting the continuing fear in Jewish communities.

He concluded, “What I saw today will stay with me forever. I am determined to fight antisemitism and hatred, making sure ‘never again’ truly means what it says: never again.”