June Report on Holyrood




*Parliamentary News Release*
036/2004		21 June 2004

CORPORATE BODY PROVIDES FINANCE COMMITTEE WITH JUNE REPORT ON HOLYROOD

Presiding Officer George Reid today wrote to Parliament’s Finance Committee with the final update on cost and programme for Holyrood before the summer recess. He also set out the latest construction progress on site, further details of Parliament’s migration plans, and how the SPCB intends to manage and report on the conclusion of contracts post-completion. Presiding Officer George Reid said: “The move to Parliament’s new building is now imminent. Six weeks from today staff will move in, and five weeks after that Parliament’s business will start at Holyrood. “Everyone in the Parliament will no doubt share my happiness that this long and difficult process is coming to an end. I w elcome the very positive reviews the building its elf has received, and I look forward to getting down to business in our new home shortly.” Key points The overall estimated final cost is unchanged at a maximum of £430.5m. There is no change in the overall programme. Occupation of the building will take place this summer. Since May’s report, £6.8m has been moved from the risk reserve to construction commitment, reflecting the predicted materialisation of costs. Security and facilities management staff are already on site at Holyrood. The rest of Parliament’s staff will start to move to the new building on August 2. Work to prepare public facilities for an estimated 700,000 visitors a year will run from August 2 up to the first day of business on September 8. The Holyrood Progress Group will continue to meet during the final stages of completion and migration, and expects to hold its final meeting at the end of September. The SPCB will continue to report to the Finance Committee on the contractual issues and final account settlements until the project reaches “commercial completion”, expected to be around one year after construction completion this summer. Cost The overall final cost of the Holyrood project is currently estimated at £424.6m - £430.5m. £6.8m net has been moved from risk to committed expenditure. £1.9m of this risk materialisation is associated with the landscaping contracts, and the remaining £4.9m covers expected materialisations to building contracts. Progress on site since the last report includes: Much of the carpet in the Chamber has now been fitted; 45 MSP desks are installed in the Chamber; The stone floor in the Garden Lobby is now well advanced; Hard landscaping has started around the north lightwell and the formal entrance; The pavement has been completed along the length of the Canongate Wall; Landscaping of the Internal Gardens is underway; Fit-out in Towers 1 and 2 is largely complete; The lower concrete pergola is fully glazed and the upper lev el of timber screening is w ell advanced; The last Caithness cladding panels are being installed on the media tower; The majority of the Bovis site accommodation has been dismantled to allow the landscaping to progress south towards the Crags. Professional advice The professional expertise and experience of David Manson, Andrew Wright and John Gibbons will continue to be available to the SPCB and to the HPT in an advisory capacity after the building is complete. Testing the building A great deal of testing of the building services will be complete by the time staff move into the building. Staff and contractors will require training on voting systems, sound and broadcasting systems in the Debating Chamber and the Committee Rooms, and this will include simulations of Parliamentary business in these areas. Snagging and commissioning Most snagging activity will be undertaken in August before business begins. During the August recess weeks it is expected that a considerable number of people will be working on snagging and defects during normal working hours, and the hoardings will remain in place during this period. Some outstanding snagging work is lik ely to continue through until the end of the year and possibly into 2005. Where possible this work will be conducted out of business hours and in recess. Hard landscaping work around all the entrances to the building will be complete by early September. Final landscaping work will continue into the autumn, including tree planting planned for November - the right time of year for this activity. The current programme includes the post-fixing of some timber louvered screens at lower lev els at the rear of the Chamber and on Tower 4. This will probably be carried out either in the October or December recess and should have no impact on building users. Contract mobilisation Major contracts, including that for maintenance, have already commenced on site with others now making preparations. Major activities include set-up of new catering, printing, webcast and crèche contracts as w ell as public information displays, the shop, mail services and numerous other contracted services that support the work of Parliament. Letter to Finance Committee Financial summary annex (pdf) Progress on site (pdf)

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