Parliament’s £4billion restoration project could be halted by roosting bats
Any signficant discovery of the endangered species roosting could threaten the granting planning permission
ROOSTING bats could call a halt to Parliament’s £4billion restoration project, it emerged last night.
Speaker John Bercow is sending a team of bat inspectors round Parliament to assess how many are nesting there.
The Guido Fawkes website said the winged mammals had been spotted in Norman Shaw North - home to many MP’s offices.
Any signficant discovery of the endangered species roosting could threaten the granting of planning permission for the refurb.
A Parliament memo revealed: “As part of the Northern Estates Programme a visual survey of all rooms in Norman Shaw North is required.
“Part of the survey will involve images to be taken of all rooms, these images will be for use in the project only.
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“Alongside this there will also be an ecology survey of all roof voids in Norman Shaw North.
“The ecology survey will establish an understanding of the likelihood of roosting bats and inform a key requirement for the planning application of the project.”
Conservationists have blamed a decline in bat populations across the UK on building and renovation work.