enough.

On Friday, Shadow Health Minister Renee Webb voiced shock at her diagnosis of the House of Assembly private members' coffee lounge.

Wooden frames around the doors and a tumble-down ceiling -- it all added up to a sorry state of affairs, she said.

"It is appalling,'' she told the House of Assembly yesterday. "It is not acceptable for people to be living under such conditions.'' Ms Webb urged the House and Grounds Committee to kick-start the House of Assembly facelift.

House Speaker Ernest DeCouto agreed with Ms Webb, saying the House and Grounds Committee would be meeting next week.

Works Minister Leonard Gibbons urged MPs to appreciate the difficulties faced by contractors.

He pointed out a court below the coffee lounge was in session five days a week.

"It was our intention the work would have been ready today,'' he said.

Later, Mr. Gibbons told The Royal Gazette that the House of Assembly had been undergoing renovations for some time at considerable expense.

Such work included repainting the building's exterior and installing a glass roof and a new security system.

Mr. Gibbons said the future of the facelift would not become clear until the House and Grounds Committee met.

UNDER CONSTRUCTION -- The coffee lounge at the House of Assembly.

BUILDING BLD