Question to the Home Office:

To ask the right hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington, representing the House of Commons Commission, if the Commission will make an assessment of the merits of supplementary heating in the Library Corridor so that the officers of the House standing there are kept warm.

The welfare of our staff is of course our principal concern. Whilst the issue of supplementary heating has not been raised by any of the Doorkeepers through the usual management channels, I can confirm that the situation has already been assessed and a simple solution, involving the closing of a fire door, has been identified, which will be implemented immediately, subject to consultation with the fire safety team. In addition, the high level windows in library corridor, which had been contributing to a cold draught in the corridor, have now all been closed.

The Doorkeepers are on post for a maximum of 30 minutes at a time, and the post is rotated daily between a team of 11 Doorkeepers, so the team should find that the proposed solution will deliver immediate benefits to their working environment.

The Library Corridor is not presently heated. It is lined on both sides with bookcases which means there is nowhere to install any radiators, and the pipework to do so currently does not exist.