Malta Exhibition  Parliament House of Malta

The Parliament House of Malta consists of two blocks connected together with bridges, one of which houses the chamber of parliament. The two blocks are separate so as not to obscure views of Saint James Cavalier from Republic Street. Each block has three floors. The structure consists of a steel frame clad in Gozitan limestone. The stone slabs are carved in such a way that they seem to have been eroded by nature. Parliament House is a zero emission building since heat energy is recovered from or given off to the mass of rock below. This is used to heat and cool the building, avoiding any cooling towers or boilers. The building of the Parliament House was a part of the City Gate Project, which was meant to redevelop the entrance of Valletta. The Parliament House was officially inaugurated by President Marie Louise Coleiro Preca on 4 May 2015. Members of Parliament and other guests gathered at the old chamber at the Grandmaster's Palace, and walked to the new building accompanied by the police force band. Coleiro Preca called the inauguration of the Parliament House "a milestone in Malta's parliamentary history", since this is the first purpose-built parliament building in Malta. The first sit#ting was held later the same day. Most of the building is closed to visitors for security reasons, but a permanent exhibition on the ground floor is open to the public. On 1 August 2015, Piano visited the Parliament House for the first time since its inauguration.