Palace of Westminster: Restoration and Renewal

Lord Vaizey of Didcot Excerpts

Wednesday 25th June 2025 Lords Chamber

[The Senior Deputy Speaker (Lord Gardiner of Kimble)]

My Lords, the backdrop is that the ongoing maintenance and repair costs are £1.45 million a week; that sets the context. The House has been very clear that the QEII Centre is the preferred decant location across the three options. Work has already been undertaken by the R&R delivery authority to survey, develop, design and assess the QEII Centre. Any future approach will, of course, depend partly on how the use of the QEII Centre varies across the three options. I should also say, with the noble Baroness, Lady Taylor, beside me, that the freehold of the building is currently owned by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.

[Lord Vaizey of Didcot (Con)]

My Lords, has my noble friend seen the very interesting proposal to build a barge in the Thames right next to the Palace of Westminster? The man behind it came on my yet-to-be-award-winning Times Radio show just the other week to talk about it, and he completely won me over. The QEII Centre is such a boring option; we know that my noble friend Lord Gove was very opposed to it. Could we not consider this rather brilliant barge, which would give a modern, 21st-century feel to the decant rather than a look-back-to-the-1980s feel?

[The Senior Deputy Speaker (Lord Gardiner of Kimble)]

My Lords, that was a very good plug for the noble Lord’s activities. However, let me be serious: a lot of work was undertaken as to the most sensible, practical and cost-effective places to go. I know that a number of options and buildings were looked at, and I know about the river proposal as well, but the QEII Centre always and consistently came out as the preferred location.