The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has warned that delaying the costly renovation of the Houses of Parliament could lead to a "catastrophic event" causing injury or hampering democracy, and that without action the historic building will crumble into managed decline.
MPs first voted to leave Parliament for extensive repairs in 2018, but disagreement over the move has continued. The committee previously warned of a "real and rising risk" that the Palace could be destroyed before the Restoration and Renewal programme begins.
Rising Costs of Delay
In its latest report, published on Wednesday, the committee warns that the weekly cost of maintenance on the parliamentary estate is expected to grow from the current £1.5 million to £2 million in coming years. Each year the programme is delayed will add £420 million to the lifetime costs of delivering the scheme.
The report comes ahead of crunch votes in Parliament to decide the future direction of the programme, which were expected around Easter but have been delayed. The Commons and Lords will be expected to narrow down the range of options from four to two.
Options and Phase One
A "full decant" costing up to £15.6 billion and lasting up to 24 years, and a partial decant called "enhanced maintenance and improvement plus" costing up to £39 billion and lasting up to 61 years, are the recommended routes. MPs and peers also have to sign off on "Phase One" of the programme, capped at £3 billion, which would focus on moving the Commons and Lords to temporary locations and relocating offices outside the palace.
The PAC warned that temporary homes for peers and MPs may not be ready when they need to leave the Palace in 2032. Restoration and Renewal authorities need to provide a more detailed "delivery schedule" for Phase One works, the committee said, and could learn from Canada's experience of renovating its parliament houses.
Calls for Accountability
The PAC also said the programme needs to be more publicly accountable and transparent, recommending a Restoration and Renewal select committee to scrutinise it. MPs and peers need more engagement from authorities to understand what their choices will mean.
Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, chair of the PAC, said: "I would urge all those who believe a decision on how to proceed should be further delayed to digest the figures in our report, showing each kick of the can down the road costs hundreds of millions in public money. They should then imagine the blow suffered by the UK's morale and reputation of some kind of catastrophic failure."
He added: "A lack of action risks, for instance, the Chamber being plunged into darkness during the State Opening of Parliament. Consider the impact of global rolling news footage of Notre Dame-like flames licking out of the building's roof, resulting in the destruction of our heritage, or worse, injuries or loss of life. These are not notional possibilities, but real and rising risks which our Committee identified three years ago."
Sir Geoffrey acknowledged that all options "involve extremely high figures with very big ranges" and said parliamentary authorities should examine the figures carefully to see how they can be reduced before the vote on Phase Two in 2030.
A UK Parliament spokesperson said: "The PAC concludes that without action, the Palace of Westminster will, at best, be in a process of managed decline. Work is already happening across the Parliamentary estate to ensure the ongoing safety of those working here and visiting. The restoration proposals put forward by the R&R Client Board, which includes MPs and Lords, include a recommendation for an initial seven years of initial works with capped costs, which the National Audit Office has previously recognised as a sensible approach."
