Don’t wait for Palace of Westminster to burn down, warns Leadsom
MPS MUST not wait until the Palace of Westminster burns down to begin rebuilding it, Andrea Leadsom has warned.
The Commons Leader said she was “desperately keen” to “crack on” with introducing legislation to establish independent statutory bodies to provide governance for Parliament’s restoration work.
In an interview she cautioned against accidentally allowing history to repeat itself, after a fire destroyed much of the old Palace of Westminster in 1834, forcing it to be rebuilt in the 1840s.
Mrs Leadsom said: “As time passes, the cost of restoration and renewal go higher – this is a World Unesco grade one listed site.
“It’s an incredibly iconic building around the world and of course the last time it got rebuilt was because it caught fire and burnt down, so we don’t want to wait until that point, so we do need to take action and that’s what we’re doing.”
She stressed that there were “significant measures” in place to ensure Parliament conforms to the necessary fire regulations, but said a “lot of money” needed to be spent improving drainage, sewage, wiring, plumbing and heating.
Mrs Leadsom also stated her desire for the work to “significantly improve” accessibility for people with disabilities visiting the historic building.
She also suggested that the restoration work, which will see MPs decant to a rebuilt Richmond House on Whitehall as a temporary chamber from the mid2020s until the 2030s, could be used to enable school groups to practise debating.