Campaign to fund a statue honouring Dame Vera Lynn will receive £1 million boost if Conservatives win power in general election

A campaign to fund a memorial to honour Dame Vera Lynn will receive a £1million boost if the Conservatives win power, it was revealed on Friday.

Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer gave her commitment to the campaign, backed by the Daily Mail, and said the memorial was a 'fitting tribute' to the late singer.

The 12ft wide sculpture is due to stand at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire, but needed a final funding boost before it could be completed.

The Conservatives' pledge would be enough to see it finished, and was welcomed by fundraisers and friends of Dame Vera, known as the Forces' Sweetheart.

Ms Frazer told the Mail: 'I know this is a campaign that is close to the Mail's heart and I am delighted to commit to backing the long-running campaign backed by the Mail to build a memorial statue of Dame Vera Lynn if we are re-elected.

'Dame Vera Lynn was an inspiration to the nation. A memorial to her life and legacy will be a fitting tribute to someone who gave us hope in our darkest hours.'

Dame Vera, whose war-time songs included The White Cliffs of Dover, died in 2020 and the campaign to build a memorial in her honour has won cross-party support from MPs.

It was initially led by Sir David Amess, the Conservative MP for Southend West in Essex, before his tragic murder in 2021.

He campaigned for a tribute to Dame Vera as a symbol of strength during the Second World War and to her lifetime of charity work.

Anna Firth, the Conservative candidate for Southend West, said: 'Dame Vera Lynn was, and still is, an inspiration to the nation.

'I am so proud that the Conservatives are making sure this important memorial is built not only for the legacy of Dame Vera but also for my predecessor, Sir David Amess, who started this campaign.

'Only under a Conservative government will this memorial get the funding it needs to be constructed and look forward to the project properly getting underway.'

The sculpture, intended as a tribute to all wartime entertainers, has been designed by Paul Day, who created the Battle of Britain Memorial on London's Victoria Embankment. 

Susan Fleet, former PA to Dame Vera Lynn and a close personal friend, said: 'The Dame Vera Lynn Memorial Statue Committee is delighted and grateful to receive the news of the Conservatives' pledge to donate £1million to complete the Memorial for the 'Forces' Sweetheart'.'

It is understood the funding will come from existing departmental budgets.