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On 6 July 1998, it was declared that the design of Enric Miralles was chosen, with work being awarded to EMBT/RMJM (Scotland) Ltd, a [[Spain|Spanish]]-Scottish joint venture design company, specifically created for the project. Construction on the building commenced in June 1999, with the demolition of the Scottish and Newcastle brewery and the beginning of foundation work to support the structure. MSP's began to move into the building in the Summer of 2004, with the offical opening by the Queen taking place in October of the same year.
==Parliamentary complex==
[[Image:HolyroodStart.jpg|left|thumbnail|230px|An aerial view of the Scottish Parliament Building complex. The red tiles of Queensberry House are visible between the MSP Office block at the back of the complex and the Tower and Canongate Buldings at the front which house the debating chamber and committee rooms.]]
The Parliament Building is actually a campus of several buildings, reflecting different architectural styles, with a total floor area of 31,000 m² (312,000 square feet),<ref name="Arup">{{cite web |url=http://www.arup.com/europe/project.cfm?pageid=4727 |title=Scottish Parliament, Holyrood, Edinburgh |publisher=Arup |accessdate=2006-10-30}}</ref> providing accommodation for MSPs, their researchers and parliamentary staff. The building is comprised of a variety of features, with the roof of Tower Builings said to be reminiscent of upturned boats on the shoreline. It is said that in the first design meeting, Miralles, armed with some twigs and leaves, thrust them onto a table and declared "This is the Scottish Parliament"<ref name="DesignBuild">{{cite web |url=http://www.designbuild-network.com/projects/scottparliament/ |title=Scottish Parliament, Holyrood |publisher=Enric Miralles, Network |accessdate=2006-10-30}}</ref> reinforcing the unique and abstact nature of the parliamentary campus. Miralles also stated that:
{{cquote2|The Parliament should be able to reflect the land it represents. The building should arise from the sloping base of Arthur's seat and arrive into the city almost surging out of the rock.|Enric Miralles 1999 |<ref name="Quote">{{cite web |url=http://www.arcspace.com/architects/miralles/parliament/ |title=Enric Miralles: The Scottish Parliament Debating Chamber |publisher=arcsoft.com |accessdate=2006-10-31}}</ref>|##px|##px}}
As a consequence the building has many features connected to nature and land, such as the leaf shaped motifs of the roof in the Garden Lobby of the building, and the large windows of the debating chamber, committee rooms and the Tower Buildings which face the broad expanse of Holyrood Park, Arthur's Seat and the Salisbury Crags. Inside the buildings, the connection to the land is symbolised by the use of Scottish rock such as [[gneiss]] and [[granite]] in the flooring and walls, and the use of oak and sycamore in the construction of the furniture.
The south-eastern aspect of the parliamentary complex is extensively landscaped.<ref name="Landscaping">{{cite web |url=http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/nmCentre/news/news-05/pa05-061.htm |title= Scottish Parliament's Landscaped Grounds open to the Public |publisher=Scottish Parliament |accessdate=2006-12-06}}</ref> Concrete "branches" extend from the parliamentary buildings, and provide members of the public with somewhere to sit and relax.<ref name="Landscaping2">{{cite web |url=http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/vli/holyrood/building/ExternalFeatures.htm |title= External Features - Landscaping |publisher=Scottish Parliament |accessdate=2006-12-06}}</ref>
==Debating Chamber==
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