Houses of Parliament

I was able to access Parliament during a Monday night session as part of a "London Walks" tour of the surrounding area. Our small group sat in on a session of the House of Lords while they debated an obscure welfare bill. (Everyone fell asleep just like in American politics;) We were allowed to stay as long as we wanted and politely ushered in and out at our request.

I would strongly suggest access via this evening tour for anyone interested in politics or world events. We were also given an explanation of the buliding of the Houses of Parliament in full view from across the river; an iconic London sight if there ever was one.

We were able to watch MP's debate some interesting issues during our visit. If you have an interest in international politics, this is a great place to visit. It is also an affordable way to rest your feet while getting a great cultural experience. You can stay for as long or as little as you want which is pretty cool since you can make it fit your own schedule. I went in January so there wasn't a wait. Not sure what it would be like at other times of year.

Toured in September, 2008. Since I'm not from the UK, to see Parliament I needed to go on the group tour and I'm glad I did because it was excellent. You get tickets from the Jewel Tower building (I believe that's its name) located across the street from Parliament(on Westminster Abbey side). There's a Parliament sign. There is a small fee (not included in a London pass card if you have). I believe these tours are only open to international visitors in the months of August and September.

Parliament is located on the Thames River and is a huge gothic styled complex of buildings and the base of the British legislative body. The tour of Parliament was about 90 minutes long. You see rooms affiliated with the House of Lords as well as the House of Commons. The British Parliament is divided into these two houses with a third being that of the British Monarch who still plays a significant role. The House of Commons is elected by the people while the House of Lords retains British history somewhat by being made up of British religious leaders and appointments due to the heredity of British titles. Our tour guide (Hugh) was very good and had a great sense of humor about British history, politics and royalty. We were not allowed to take photos inside Parliament except for the Westminster Hall which is all that is remaining from the original Parliament building which was devastated by the London fire. The Hall has an incredible wood roof that is the largest in northern Europe. This is also the Hall where most heads of state and royalty lie after their passing. Parliament was also hit during World War II and extensive renovations had to be conducted as a result but Westminster Hall remained somewhat untouched overall.

During the tour, we saw the rooms were the Queen prepares to open each session. She has a ceremonial role in opening sessions and no bill becomes law without her signature. However, it is purely a ceremonial role at this point of history. This is explained on the tour. We also saw the small rooms where the House of Commons and the House of Lords meet. If you’ve ever watched PBS, you will know what I’m talking about. Those rooms where they are crammed in on top of each other arguing and debating. The Brits like it to be close because they feel it leads to better interaction and debate. There are also viewing platforms located above the rooms for the general public if they want to watch the debate live. Our tour was one dazzling room after another with the Lords side being a bit more royal looking with painted and guilded ceilings and the Commons side being a bit more “plain” with heavy use of wood paneling and single color ceilings. Both very pretty but in completely different ways. The House of Lords side is heavy in the color of red while the Commons side is heavy in the use of green. Both have their own meeting rooms. The Lords side meeting room has a number of portraits of former British kings and queens while the Commons side has statues of Winston Churchill, Margaret Thatcher, etc. You can see pictures (that I couldn’t take) at: http://www.parliament.uk/about/images/interior.cfm

Parliament is also home of the famous Big Ben. It also has some nice grounds which are open to the public and run along the Thames River. It was a very informative tour and I’m so glad I was able to do.