Sustainability Page 09 Feb 2015

About this building

Parliament Buildings is a six storey Grade-B listed building originally constructed to accommodate the newly formed Government of Northern Ireland, established under the Government of Ireland Act 1920.

The grounds of Stormont Estate (224 Acres at the time of purchase) cost approximately £20,000 and the cost of constructing Parliament Buildings came close to £1.7 million. The Prince of Wales, later King Edward VIII, declared Parliament Buildings open on 16th November 1932 on behalf of King George V.

The building is designed in Greek Classical tradition, constructed by Stewart Partners Ltd under the guidance of architect Arnold Thornley, from Liverpool. He was a man who paid great attention to detail with many of the features in Parliament Buildings having symbolic reference. One example of this detail can be illustrated by the length of the building as it measures exactly 365 feet wide, representative of one foot for each day of the year. Arnold Thornley later received a Knighthood from George V in recognition of his architectural work.

Building Statistics

Study our data

The data that we have provided below gives detailed information on how much energy is consumed in the running of Parliament Buildings and how much it costs. There are detailed breakdowns of weekly and monthly figures as well as total yearly figures since 2007. You can then see what environmental impact this energy consumption has had in the form of carbon emissions. We have also included statistics on how much waste has been produced since April 2011 including figures highlighting what proportion of it has been recycled.

Find out more about the Assembly Commission's commitment to sustainable development.

Energy Consumption

In the graph below you can see weekly figures for the total energy (gas and electricity combined) consumed by Parliament Buildings from April 2011 in kw/h. By clicking and selecting a portion of the graph you can zoom in to view the consumption in a specific time period. You can also view the individual figures for gas and electricity consumption, a comparison of gas against electricity and yearly consumption since 2007 by selecting the appropriate option from the drop down menu. 

Expand the table below to view a detailed breakdown of the figures for energy consumption shown in the graphs above:

Display Table

Carbon Emissions

How does this energy consumption affect the carbon emissions produced in Parliament Buildings? You can view the impact on emissions in the graphs provided below. You will find weekly figures since April 2011 and yearly figures from 2007 - 2012 by selecting the appropriate option in the drop down menu. You can also view the emissions produced by staff travel (i.e. flights) since 2009. The Assembly Commission takes our environmental impact and concerns very seriously and is committed to becoming an examplar organisation in respect of sustainable development (view our Environmental Policy Statement).

Expand the table below to view a detailed breakdown of the figures for carbon emissions shown in the graphs above:

Display Table

Energy Costs

The graph below shows the monthly energy costs in Parliament Buildings from April 2007. You can zoom in to a specific time period by clicking and dragging across the selected time period on the graph. You can also view the yearly energy costs by selecting the appropriate option from the drop-down menu below.

Expand the table below to view a detailed breakdown of these figures:

Display Table

Waste and Recycling

The Assembly Commission is committed to sustainable development and the monitoring of our environmental impact (view our Environmental Policy Statement). On average, Parliament Buildings produces around 10,000 Kgs of waste per month. A detailed breakdown from April 2011 can be found in the graph below.

Expand the table below to view a detailed breakdown of these figures as well as percentage figures illustrating the concerted effort and commitment to recycle as much as possible:

Display Table

Display Energy Certificate

Since 1 October 2008 public buildings in the UK over 1,000m² have been required to display a Display Energy Certificate (DEC) prominently at all times. Display Energy Certificates were introduced by the government in response to the EU Energy Performance of Buildings Directive which all EU member states were required to implement by January 2009.

DEC’s are designed to promote the improvement of the energy performance of buildings. They are based upon the actual energy performance of a building and increase transparency about the energy efficiency of public buildings. DEC’s use a scale from A to G with A being the most efficient and G the least. The Display Energy Certificate for Parliament Buildings is available through the link below.

View the Display Energy Certificate for Parliament Buildings [PDF]

Previously asked questions

What figures are you showing and why?

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How much does Parliament Buildings pay for its energy?

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Can you show data from the transport emissions of staff from Parliament Buildings?

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What measures have been taken to improve energy efficiency in Parliament Buildings?

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Is the electricity procured for Parliament Buildings from renewable sources?

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What is the average daily energy consumption?

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Why was there such a major cost reduction between 2008-2009 and 2009-2010?

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How have we achieved the reduction to date?

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