Have your say on the Parliamentary Buildings (Restoration and Renewal) Bill

* In the last Parliamentary Session, the following Public Bill Committees concluded their consideration of the Bill earlier than scheduled: Criminal Finances, Cultural Property (Armed Conflicts), Health Service Medical Supplies (Costs), Neighbourhood Planning, Savings (Government Contributions), Technical and Further Education, Commonwealth Development Corporation, Children & Social Work, National Citizen Service, and Bus Services.

Aims of the Bill

The Parliamentary Buildings (Restoration and Renewal) Bill 2017-19 establishes the bodies that will be responsible for overseeing and delivering the restoration and renewal of the Palace of Westminster.

The Parliamentary Buildings (Restoration and Renewal) Bill 2017-19 [Bill 388] was introduced in the House of Commons on 8 May 2019, by the Leader of the House of Commons. As well as other Cabinet ministers, Valerie Vaz, the shadow Leader of the House of Commons, is also a sponsor of the Bill. A written statement from the Leader of the House of Commons, on the same day, noted that the Bill would give effect to resolutions passed by the House of Commons and the House of Lords on 31 January and 6 February 2018, respectively.

The Bill defines “the Parliamentary building works”, which encompasses “Palace restoration works” – the Restoration and Renewal Programme. The scope of the definition is wider than the Palace restoration works. This is to allow the Commissions of the House of Commons and of the House of Lords, with the agreement of the Sponsor Body and Delivery Authority, to designate other works relating to the Parliamentary Estate as works to be undertaken by the programme.

The Bill establishes the statutory body that will have overall responsibility for the Parliamentary building works – the Parliamentary Works Sponsor Body. It requires the Sponsor Body to form a company limited by guarantee – the Delivery Authority – to formulate proposals relating to Palace restoration works and to carry out the Parliamentary building works. The Bill also establishes the Parliamentary Works Estimates Commission. Estimates are prepared by the Sponsor Body. The Estimates Commission is responsible for laying estimates before the House of Commons. Before doing so, it has to review them and if the anticipated final cost exceeds the amount of funds allocated for the works, it can reject the estimate and require the Sponsor Body to prepare a new estimate.

The Bill requires parliamentary approval for the proposed Palace restoration works and the funding of those works.

Before that approval is obtained, expenditure is limited to preparatory works, which include initial design works and works that “do not affect the continued functioning of the Palace of Westminster for the purposes of either House of Parliament”. So there are two phases:

• In phase one – before Parliamentary approval – expenditure limits are set by the Commissions of the two Houses.
• In phase two – after Parliamentary approval – expenditure limits are set in the approval resolution.

Follow the progress of the Parliamentary Builddings (Restoration and Renewal) Bill

The Parliamentary Buildings (Restoration and Renewal) Bill 2017-19 (HC Bill 388) was published on 8 May 2019. The Second reading of the Bill in the House of Commons was held on Tuesday 21 May 2019.

• Catch up on Parliament News: MPs debate the Parliamentary Buildings (Restoration and Renewal) Bill
• Bills before Parliament: Parliamentary Buildings (Restoration and Renewal) Bill 2017–19
• Read Explanatory Notes: Parliamentary Buildings (Restoration and Renewal) Bill 2017–19
• House of Commons Library Briefing Paper

This Bill has now been committed to a Public Bill Committee and is expected to hold 6 line-by-line scrutiny sessions on Tuesday 4, Thursday 6, and Tuesday 11 June. The Public Bill Committee must conclude by Tuesday 11 June. There will be no oral evidence sessions.

Guidance on submitting written evidence

Deadline for written evidence submissions

The Public Bill Committee is now able to receive written evidence. The sooner you send in your submission, the more time the Committee will have to take it into consideration, and possibly reflect it in an amendment. The order in which amendments are taken in Committee will be available in due course under Selection of Amendments on the Bill documents pages. Once the Committee has dealt with an amendment it will not revisit it.

The Committee is expected to meet for the first time on Tuesday 4 June 2019; it will stop receiving written evidence at the end of the Committee stage on Tuesday 11 June 2019. Please note that when the Committee concludes its consideration of the Bill it is no longer able to receive written evidence and it can conclude earlier than the expected deadline of 5.00pm on Tuesday 11 June 2019.

Your submission should be emailed to scrutiny@parliament.uk.

Further guidance on submitting written evidence can be found here.

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