Scope and options tabled for delivery of Palace of Westminster restoration

Preliminary reports into the crumbling Parliament building revealed that the degradation is worse than anticipated, while the levels of asbestos are higher than first thought.

The R&R Client Board was appointed in February 2023 by both Houses to identify what the R&R should look like and how it will be delivered. It features senior officials from both Houses alongside external members with “extensive experience of major projects”.

The Board has published a new Strategic Case which it says will lead the way to an evidence-based decision in 2025 on way forward for the R&R of the Palace.

The Board’s new Strategic Case reveals that it has weighed up the scope of works and the extent of the decant and that they have considered 36 combinations of how the R&R work could be delivered. It has assessed them against a range of criteria including value for money, health and safety implications, likely disruption to the work of Parliament and lasting benefits.

The Board considered six levels of ambition for the restoration ranging from priority areas only (level 0) to transformative change, including future provision against climate change (level 5).

It has determined that a level 4 “reasonably ambitious” scope for the works is the best value for money. This would deliver a range of improvements to the Palace but would stop short of the transformative change proposed under the highest level considered, which it was concluded did not represent better value for money.

It is expected to achieve improvements in the following areas:

• health and safety, including fire safety and addressing the risks posed by asbestos;
• renewal and expansion of mechanical, electrical and other services
• building fabric conservation
• air ventilation and heating and cooling to rooms and offices
• security protection measures
• accessibility – including to improve audibility and increase step-free access, with the greatest improvements in the most visited and used areas of the Palace and an average enhancement from the current 12% step free access to circa 60% across the Palace

The works will reduce the amount of useable floorspace in the Palace due to the space required for installation of new electrical services, replacing the existing steam heating system and other improvements.

It has decided that two options will be taken forwards for the delivery of the works:

• both Houses moving out for the majority of the works, with the House of Commons prioritised for an earlier return (a full decant option)
• the House of Lords moving out for the duration of the works while the Commons Chamber and essential support functions remain in the Palace in varying locations throughout the works (a continued presence option)

The full decant option would see both Houses relocated nearby. The House of Commons would go to Richmond House, alongside continuing use of the rest of the Northern Estate (from Portcullis House to Norman Shaw North). The House of Lords would go to the QEII Conference Centre building, while continuing to make use of the existing Southern Estate (i.e. Millbank House, Fielden House and Old Palace Yard).

The House of Commons would be prioritised for a return in roughly eight years at which point the works would be sufficiently complete to enable this. The House of Lords would return after 11 years, when the works are complete.

The continued presence option would again see the House of Lords relocated to the QEII Conference Centre but the House of Commons would be relocated elsewhere on the House of Commons Estate.

This option would take 17 years before the House of Lords could return.

All timescales are indicative at this stage.

However, the Board also believes that in addition to these two options, further work should be undertaken on a third option of enhanced maintenance and improvement for restoring the Palace through a rolling programme of works. This work will consider:

• the level of improvements to the Palace that this option could achieve, including levels of compliance with health and safety legislation, judged against the same criteria that were used to assess the full decant and continued presence delivery options
• the costs and risks of this approach (including health and safety risks and mitigations)
• how long it will take to complete such a programme of works, including the extent of any partial, temporary decant from the Palace of Westminster that could be necessary

Further detailed work will be undertaken on all three R&R options before being presented to the Houses in 2025.

When outline plans and cost analysis for the R&R programme was revealed in 2022, some MPs expressed dismay at the idea of being removed from the Houses. A non-decant option was costed at £11bn to £22bn and was estimated to take up to 76 years.

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