Asked by: Lord Norton of Louth (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Harrington of Watford on 28 July (HL952), what research they have undertaken on the availability and cost of alternative sites to the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre for hosting the House of Lords during any potential decant of Parliament; and what was the cost of this research.
Answered by Baroness Scott of Bybrook - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities)
DLUHC has not undertaken any work on the availability and cost of alternative locations for the potential House of Lords decant during the Restoration and Renewal Programme. Nor has it led on developing the proposed costings work for the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre. In the context of the Places for Growth programme, the Government has previously explored whether space outside London would allow for parliamentary activity. The location of Parliament is a matter for Parliament.
Asked by: Lord Norton of Louth (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the letter from the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities to the Lord Speaker, dated 13 May, represents Government policy.
Answered by Lord Harrington of Watford
The Government is clear that it is up to the House of Lords to decide where they wish to be located, including during any potential decant of Parliament. The previous Secretary of State said in his letter that he would welcome the House of Lords playing a role in the levelling up agenda and he suggested a number of illustrative options.
The freehold of the QEII Conference Centre is held by the Secretary of State. The Restoration and Renewal programme is currently being reshaped. Tangentially, the department is taking steps to deliver clarity for the commercial users of the Centre, and good outcomes for the British taxpayer.