§ Mr. Cormackasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on the Government's response to the fourth report of the Select Committee on House of Commons (Services), Session 1979–80, on the cleaning and restoration of the exterior of the Palace of Westminster.
§ Mr. HeseltineFollowing a fall of stone in New Palace Yard on 2 March, thorough inspections of other areas of48W stonework, including the Clock Tower and the Victoria Tower, have been started. As was the case after the fall in Speaker's Green in 1979, further potentially dangerous stonework has been found after every new inspection.
Since 2 March numerous decorative pieces of stone have been taken down; some of these could have been dislodged by a slight movement. The pavement beneath the Victoria Tower has also been closed as a precaution while a canopy is erected to give protection from any stone that might fall from the upper half of the tower before it can be properly inspected in a few weeks' time.
The inspections so far completed have increased my concern about the condition of the stonework, and although any identifiably dangerous stones have been removed, I have decided that a start should be made as soon as possible on a major programme of repair, restoration and conservation. This meets the main recommendation in the Committee's report, and is the only way in which danger and further deterioration can be avoided.
In order to reveal the condition of the stonework it is essential to remove the corrosive deposits. This will also prevent further chemical attack on the face of the stone.
The first phase of the conservation programme, costing about £¼million, will start in the recess this summer; the rate of progress thereafter will depend on the extent to which work can proceed while Parliament is sitting and on the level of funds that I can allocate to this programme in succesive years. My aim is to complete the work in as short a time as possible.