Swathes of Parliament were closed off to entry and exit last night as once again crumbling masonry forced authorities to put up police tape, cutting off access to the south side of the palace. This comes just a week after a fire sprang to life in the basement of the building. Yesterday evening Tory MPs received a message from whips informing them that:

“Please note that, owing to falling masonry, Black Rods Garden Entrance and St. Stephens Entrance have had to close.

There are also issues with the scaffolding at Cromwell Green Entrance and this will also be closing soon.”

In 2018 MPs voted for a “full and timely decant” of Parliament in order to carry out substantive repair work and end the era of patching the building which, despite constant work, is falling into a state of disrepair. Whilst this is set to begin in 2025, a large chunk of Tory MPs are not at all keen on moving…