MPs and peers face a looming choice: stay put or move out to allow billions of pounds of urgent repairs to the crumbling Palace of Westminster. That was the conclusion of a report from MPs, peers and lay members on the restoration and renewal client board this month. The palace, rebuilt after a fire destroyed it in 1834, is falling apart. There have been 36 “fire incidents” since 2016. Water leaks, heating failures and sewerage problems plague the heart of this Unesco world heritage site.
Fixing Westminster would save money in the long run. An upgrade is also a matter of safety and legacy. “The building is just waiting for some disaster,” says the Tory peer Michael Dobbs, who advises visitors that if they see someone running, they should run too. Labour’s Peter Hain is blunter still, calling it “a Notre Dame inferno in the making”. Without action, he warns, the Commons could go up in flames.
