The Conservative Party has today [Wednesday
17th February] launched a campaign calling for a
fundamental rethink of the current plans for the Restoration and
Renewal of the Palace of Westminster.
Under proposals presented to MPs, the programme could take up to
six decades and cost in the region of £30–40 billion.
While essential safety work is undoubtedly required to address
fire risk, asbestos, mechanical failure and structural decay, the
scale, scope and governance of the current proposals raise
serious concerns about value for money and parliamentary
accountability.
At a time when families are under sustained financial pressure
and public services face real constraints, a programme of this
magnitude demands rigorous scrutiny, firm cost discipline and
clear prioritisation. Those standards are not currently being
met.
A saving in the region of £40 billion would be so large as to be
enough to pay for reversing all the damaging tax raising measures
in Rachel Reeves' first disastrous Budget.
In December, MP, Shadow Leader of the House
of Commons, wrote to the Chairs of the Restoration and Renewal
Client Board warning of major weaknesses in both the substance of
the plans and the process by which they are being advanced. His
concerns have not been adequately addressed.
The Conservatives are therefore launching a public petition
calling for the programme to be paused and refocused.
Among the most serious concerns are:
- Escalating cost and timescale: Estimates have risen
dramatically over time, with completion potentially stretching
across multiple decades.
- Mission creep: What began as a safety-led programme risks
expanding into a wholesale transformation of the Parliamentary
Estate, including extensive additional works beyond core
structural remediation.
- Lack of proper scrutiny: MPs and Peers may soon be asked to
approve an initial £3 billion of expenditure with limited debate
and without the level of external review normally expected for a
project of this scale.
- Full decant proposals: Options under consideration include
relocating both Houses from the Palace for more than a decade —
an unprecedented step with profound constitutional, symbolic and
practical implications.
The Palace of Westminster is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one
of the most recognisable democratic buildings in the world. It
requires careful conservation and essential safety upgrades. But
restoration must not become reinvention. The priority should be
to make the building safe, secure and fully functional — not to
reshape it beyond recognition or burden taxpayers with open-ended
liabilities.
The Conservatives are calling for:
- A halt to the current trajectory of the programme;
- A refocusing on essential safety and structural works;
- Clear cost ceilings and phased delivery;
- Stronger external oversight and transparent reporting to
Parliament;
- Governance arrangements that are demonstrably fit for
purpose.
MP, Leader of the
Conservative Party, said:
“Parliament's restoration project is out of control, and the
public should be as angry about it as I am.
“This was meant to be essential works to keep a cherished,
historic building safe and functioning. It has turned into a
basket case white elephant project.
“While Labour are destroying jobs and livelihoods, taxpayers are
being asked to bankroll billions more to turn the Palace of
Westminster into a Net-Zero Dubai hotel. Many of the people
pushing for this hate our heritage. The Conservative Party exists
to protect that heritage and British institutions and we will be
voting against this.”
MP, Shadow Leader of the House
of Commons, said:
“The Palace of Westminster is one of our greatest national
institutions. It must be made safe and preserved for future
generations.
“But the current Restoration and Renewal process is drifting
towards a vast, decades-long project with costs running into the
tens of billions, insufficient scrutiny, and unclear
accountability.
“At a time of tight public finances, Parliament cannot ask the
country to sign a blank cheque. The focus must be on essential
works, firm cost control and proper oversight.
“Parliament should be sovereign over its own future. That means a
fully informed House, a transparent process and a plan that is
affordable, measured and deliverable.”
ENDS
Notes to Editors
Nicholas Boys-Smith has written a highly informative
article on the subject, including examples of the way in which
the Restoration and Renewal Plans have become gold-plated and
unnecessarily expensive. [Nicholas
Boys-Smith, ‘Call for the King', The Critic, 9 February
2026, link.]
