page_title: Old Parliament House, Canberra
section_title: Interiors
hierarchical_section_title: Old Parliament House, Canberra / Interiors
caption_attribution_description: English: Party room of the National Party of Australia (originally, the Country Party.
context_page_description: Old Parliament House, formerly known as the Provisional Parliament House, was the seat of the Parliament of Australia from 1927 to 1988. The building began operation on 9 May 1927 after Parliament's relocation from Melbourne to the new capital, Canberra. In 1988, the Commonwealth Parliament transferred to the new Parliament House on Capital Hill. It also serves as a venue for temporary exhibitions, lectures and concerts.
  On 2 May 2008 it was made an Executive Agency of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. On 9 May 2009, the Executive Agency was renamed the Museum of Australian Democracy at Old Parliament House, reporting to the Special Minister of State.
  Designed by John Smith Murdoch and a team of assistants from the Department of Works and Railways, the building was intended to be neither temporary nor permanent—only to be a "provisional" building that would serve the needs of Parliament for a maximum of 50 years. The design extended from the building itself to include its gardens, décor and furnishings.
context_section_description: The Murdoch-designed interiors remain in substantial areas of the building, sometimes with their original furnishings.  The three best-preserved interiors, other than King's Hall and the Chambers, are the Government party room (on the House of Representatives side), the Senate club room (also called the Senate Opposition party room) and the Clerk of the Senate's office (which was originally the President of the Senate's office).  All retain their original fittings and furnishings, designed by Murdoch and his team in accordance with the simplified classical design scheme.  These are characterised by simple forms, based on Murdoch's square motif.
  The original building was small and did not provide individual offices for all members.  To an extent, this was to be mitigated by ministers having offices in their own departments, originally in the east and west blocks (also designed by Murdoch).  For this reason, the party rooms are not just meeting rooms but contain private phone booths, washbasins, desks and small areas for more intimate discussions.
caption: Former party room of the National Party, originally named the Country Party. As in the new Parliament House, a red and/or green light flashed below the clock to signal the occurrence of a division (voting) of the Senate or House respectively.
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