HC Deb 30 June 1947 vol 439 cc923-4
4. Mr. Driberg

asked the Minister of Works if he will consider instituting an open or limited competition for the design of the new British embassy in Rome on terms which will ensure fair consideration of entries by architects younger and more experimental than those usually commissioned to design public buildings.

Mr. Key

I will certainly consider the suggestion put forward by my hon. Friend, but I must bear in mind the fact that in the case of an important building of this kind, experience and knowledge of the requirements may be of as great importance as ability to produce an experimental design.

Mr. Driberg

Will my right hon. Friend bear in mind that, admirable to some tastes as the work of Sir Giles Gilbert Scott may seem, he is not the only living architect?