The Government has promised at least $27 million for two new office buildings on Parliament’s precinct.

The 2022 Budget, published by Finance Minister Grant Robertson on Thursday, showed the Government would go ahead with the planned construction, putting aside $27m in capital spending and further funding that was not specified “for commercial sensitivity reasons”.

Parliament has in recent years been squeezed for space after an annexe behind the Beehive and Bowen House, a leased 22-floor building, were vacated due to required earthquake strengthening.

The budget promise went largely unmentioned by Robertson and other political parties on Thursday. Speaker Trevor Mallard, who has responsibility for the Parliamentary precinct, said the project had “majority party support”.

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He said the existing arrangements for ministers, MPs, and staff were “expensive, inefficient, and unsustainable”.

“We need to keep the people who work at and visit Parliament safe. Our existing precinct has risks to safety and security, and our buildings have low resilience to natural disasters and Wellington infrastructure failures.

“The new buildings will be base isolated and constructed using rigorous earthquake safety designs, within a consolidated and secure parliamentary precinct.”

Security at Parliament has been a concern of Mallard’s since the 23-day occupation managed to take control of much of Parliament's grounds earlier in the year.

Mallard confirmed both a new building would be built on a car park at the rear of Parliament, and the annexe would be rebuilt and become a dedicated home for Cabinet ministers. A new secure deliveries building was also planned.

He said the buildings would be “custom-built, modular office space” that would save the Government money.

“Over the past 30 years, Parliament has spent nearly $200 million leasing and maintaining Bowen House. After every election, Parliament’s working areas must be altered to cater for the different parties elected, which costs between $300,000 - $500,000.”

An estimated cost of the new buildings would be provided once the buildings have been designed and a construction company chosen.

A project to build new office blocks on Parliament's precinct was first signed off by the National Government in 2016, but the plans were halted by NZ First leader Winston Peters, who insisted on this in coalition negotiations that formed the 2017 Labour Government.

Mallard in April 2021, after NZ First was ousted in the 2020 election, revived the plans.