Portcullis House

Alongside Big Ben sits the parliamentary office building Portcullis House which opened in 2001. It was designed by Michael Hopkins & Partners to represent the chained portcullis symbol of the Houses of Parliament, together with a series of 'mock' chimneys said to invoke the Gothic Revival of its neighbour.

When commissioned in 1992 the cost of Portcullis House was to be £165m. After building cost inflation and delays, the price increased to £235m, including an extra £10 million MP's had not been told about. Costs included £150,000 for decorative fig trees, £2m for electric blinds and, for each MP, a reclining chair at £440.[4] A parliamentary inquiry into the over-spend was carried by Sir Thomas Legg. Although completed in 2000, the report was never published.[5] By April 2012 the fig trees, which were rented, had cost almost £400,000.[6]

In 2015 the roof required repairs and this was expensive, the MP's considered suing the architects (Hopkins) and structural engineers (Arup) [1].

References:

1. https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2002/jul/24/uk.houseofcommons1
2. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/mps-may-sue-firm-that-built-portcullis-house-over-roof-damage-a6914491.html
3. https://www.i-fm.net/members/news/feb01/27_01.html
4. "Royal seal of approval: Portcullis House opens". The Guardian. 27 February 2001. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2016-08-11.
5. Swaine, Jon (10 October 2009). "MPs expenses: Profile of Sir Thomas Legg". London: Telegraph. Retrieved 2009-10-13.
6. "Taxpayer spends £400,000 on fig trees for MPs". Retrieved 2016-08-11.

See also:

• Buildings of Westminster.
• Wikipedia page here.
• Full photos before and after construction here, and other designs for the same location.
• The building had 7,500 defects on completion.
• NAO report by Sir John Bourn here.