Document ID: chunk:federal_register_of_legislation:F2022L00620:body:0:p45
Version: federal_register_of_legislation:F2022L00620
Segment Type: other
Provision Reference: 
Character Range: 122105–125001

period of development in the new capital.  In many respects, the completion of the grouping represented the culmination of Canberra's 'establishment' (or 'inaugural') phase'.  Further, the scale of West Block and East Block provides an insight into the times.  For a period of more than 50 years, these two buildings were the epicentre of Australian Parliamentary bureaucracy and were fundamental to the administration of Federal political power.
The Parliament House Secretariat group were also the first buildings completed in the Parliamentary Triangle, the central feature of the Griffin's plan for the city.  While Griffin's plan was not implemented as per his vision, some characteristics were delivered including: the siting of Old Parliament House on the Land Axis with expansive views to the north, and the symmetrical positioning of departmental offices to either side of the Land Axis.
The construction of a group of buildings for the administration of a territory, region or State in Australia is uncommon.  A more typical sequence is for the construction of a principal parliament (or equivalent) building, with support facilities delivered incrementally over a period of time as required.  An exception to this pattern is the Commonwealth and State offices group in Brisbane, also planned and designed by J S Murdoch.  The context in Canberra was, of course, unique with Canberra being the only Australian city designed and constructed to function as the political and governmental centre of the nation.

3.1.3               The Dugout
In 1942, following the Japanese attacks on Darwin, trenches were dug within the Provisional Parliament House precinct, including to the south-east of West Block.  Air raid shelters were also provided, including one in the embankment to the east of West Block.  The embankment was partially dug out to enable construction and, presumably, to provide some degree of blast protection.
The air raid shelter was of standard design and construction, with a narrow central chamber and flanked at either end by deeper entries (see Figure 28).
At the beginning of 1943, the air raid shelter was adapted to accommodate a Typex cypher machine, used for coding and decoding cables – the Cables Department was based at West Block.  The machine enabled Prime Minister John Curtin to communicate directly with British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and American President Franklin Roosevelt.  It was accommodated in a freestanding structure because of the highly sensitive nature of the cables.
Figure 39 Typex cypher machines of the type housed in the Dugout, operated by the Women's Auxiliary Air Force (UK)
Source: www.pinterest.co.uk, accessed 4 July 2018
The building was adapted as a substation in 1945, following World War II.
The Dugout provides tangible evidence of a strategic means of communication between Australia and her allies during World War