London -The particular situation of the center of power of British’s Politics
Over the years the incredible history of Westminster has been always linked to the political issues of the royal family and to all those politicians that have passed through its chambers. Basically, the whole history of Great Britain has been remarked through the walls of this awesome building.
The first news that we have about Westminster it’s about its abbey, indeed, it was built in the 10th century after that a fisherman saw a vision of Saint Peter. The construction of the present church begun only in the 1245 by Henry III, and it has become the traditional place of coronations of the British Monarchy and the true center of power of the Kingdom. Around the originally abbey, it has been built, over the centuries, the other parts that compound the nowadays building.
The history of the Westminster hasn’t finished yet, and it seems that the weight of the past has begun to demand a restoration for all these years of service. Indeed, many collapses has been registered at the structure and the whole building actually needs a careful renovation.
This peculiar situation puts into serious dilemma the staff of engineers that has been analyzing the structural condition of the Westminster’s building, due to the fact that it is the seat of members of the British Parliament. The estimated budget for the major restoration, without moving the members of Parliament, amount to £5.7 billion and should take 32 years.
In the recent past of Great Britain’s history, Churchill has already talked about the issue and according to him, the best solution could be to demolish the ancient structure, except the abbey, and to build a new palace with innovative elements but based on the original building.
In my opinion, the smartest solution, without touching the feelings of Great Britain’s people, it could be to find a great and security building where all the institutions could be transfer and to start the complete restoration of the symbol of London and its country. Finding a temporary building will not be easy, but at least, it will avoid waiting so long to be able to visit the Westminster Palace again.