It’sbeen 150 years this summer since building work was completed on the Houses o-组卷网

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It’s been 150 years this summer since building work was completed on the Houses of Parliament in Westminster, London. When it was completed, Tsar Nicholas I, the ruler of Russia, called it “a dream in stone”.

Important buildings have been built on this site for more than 1, 000 years. In the early 8th century, a church was built that became known as the West Minster. In the 11th century it was the location of a royal residence (王室宅邸). This was the first Palace of Westminster. The first official Parliament met there in 1295. Work on the palace continued until 1834, when the building was destroyed by fire.

In 1835, the architect Charles Barry was picked to design the Parliament building in a style known as “Gothic Revival”. Another architect, Augustus Pugin, helped with the inner part. The work overran and the costs rose to three times more than planned. According to one historian it cost £2.3 million — which in today’s money is more than £4 billion. It finally reopened in 1870.

The Houses of Parliament are once again considered to be a serious fire risk. Small fires broke out 40 times between 2008 and 2012 and a fire safety team has to be on site. A report in 2016 said that maintaining the building was like “trying to fill a bathtub with a thimble (顶针) while the water is flowing out of the plughole (排水孔) at the other end”. In 2018, Parliament held discussions over its restoration and decided that its members would have to move out of the building during its refurbishment (翻新).

The plan is for everyone to move out by 2025 when the restoration will begin. It is said that it will cost around £4 billion and be completed by the early 2030s. The plans include taking away all fire risks, restoring the stonework and repairing around 4,000 windows.

【小题1】What is the main idea of paragraph 2?

A．The West Minster was a popular place for tourists.

B．The site of the Parliament building is historic.

C．Building the Parliament building took a long time.

D．People had different reasons to build a palace in Westminster.

【小题2】What can we learn about the Parliament building?

A．It cost less than expected.

B．It was completed on time.

C．It was being rebuilt for more than 30 years.

D．It was designed by Augustus Pugin alone.

【小题3】What is the biggest problem the Houses of Parliament face now?

A．A great fire risk.