Construction will begin next month on a new, £6.48m entrance facility for the Scottish Parliament.
The decision to build the new facility was reached yesterday by the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body, following “clear and consistent” security advice.
The cost will be met from within the Parliament’s existing resources by postponing other projects and spreading the cost across two financial years.
The new facility will aim to protect the integrity of the building by relocating the point at which security screening takes places.
The current entrance and security facility is considered by security advisers to be too close to the debating chamber and to areas heavily populated by members of the public and school groups.
In a letter to MSPs yesterday, Presiding Officer Tricia Marwick said:
“It is incumbent upon us to take the right decision on behalf of those whose safety is our responsibility.”