§ Norman BakerTo ask the hon. Member for Roxburgh and Berwickshire, representing the House of Commons Commission, what has been the cost to date since the opening of Portcullis House of(a) maintenance, (b) remedial action to rectify faults and (c) action to introduce improvements requested by hon. Members; if he will produce a detailed list in respect of (b) and (c) above, with itemised costs; and if he will make a statement. [25377]
§ Mr. Bell[holding answer 9 January 2002]: I have been asked to reply.
I regret that the information is not available in the form requested, but the following is readily available.
The first Members moved into the building in September 2000 and it was fully occupied at the beginning of January before the official opening in February 2001.
Maintenance costs in the current financial year, including VAT, total £650,000 to the end of December, which is in budget.
It has been necessary to enhance the capacity of the fan in the extract system from the cooking ranges, to replace three broken panels in the courtyard roof and to alter the interface with the window blinds. There is continuing work on the borehole to prevent silt entering the cooling system; to the lifts that run between the kitchens; and to the water feature. In each instance questions of liability for the costs are the subject of discussions with the contractor and/or the designer.
690WThe majority of the changes requested by hon. Members and their staff have been for furniture additional to or different from the standard range available for the building. In the main these have been met from the furniture bought as part of the project but a further £3,800 has been spent. In some cases there have also been consequent minor changes to the power sockets. The only other change has been the conversion of cupboards to book/display cases in a limited number of rooms where none was provided and the removal of intrusive lightshelves from the fifth floor corner offices. The cost is some £20,000.