§ 11.06 a.m.
§ The Chairman of Committees rose to move, That the First Report from the Select Committee, on Visitor Facilities (HL Paper 113) be agreed to.
§ The noble Lord said: My Lords, the proposals put forward by the House Committee in its report are for a new reception and security building on the north side of Cromwell Green. Noble Lords will find a handy, fold-out map at the back of the report which shows the proposed location. The report is, in effect, a summary and endorsement of the Joint Report on Visitor Facilities made by the House of Commons Accommodation and Works and Administration Committees.
§ The purpose of the proposed new building is to improve the welcome given to visitors and to enhance security. Visitors will no longer need to queue outside, and the provision of three security screening machines, instead of the current two, will speed up the entry process. Security considerations also reinforce the need for a purpose-built security point outside the main building.
§ Other benefits would be improved access for disabled visitors, the removal of the unsightly X-ray machines by St Stephen's entrance, and the potential to provide better information for visitors while they are waiting to visit committees or the galleries.
§ Although these proposals are set out at length in a joint report by two Commons committees, Lords committees have been fully involved in drawing up these plans. The House Committee, the Administration and Works Committee and the Information Committee have all contributed to the discussion, and the proposals now before the House are very much in line with what these Lords committees wished to see.
1504§ The House Committee appreciated that some Members wished to go further than these proposals and provide a full interpretative visitors' centre. At present, however, this is not possible within the limitations of the historic Palace. A working group of officials in both Houses is currently investigating the options for the provision of a visitors' centre, and educational and other facilities. In the mean while, the House Committee considered that progress should be made with these current proposals as the important first step towards improving facilities for visitors and enhancing security. I beg to move.
§ Moved, That the First Report from the Select Committee, on Visitor Facilities (HL Paper 113) be agreed to.—(The Chairman of Committees.)
§ Following is the report referred to: