After World War I the Federal Capital Advisory Committee was established to prepare Canberra to be the seat of government, including the construction of a Parliament House.

[5][6] In 1978 the Fraser government decided to proceed with a new building on Capital Hill, and the Parliament House Construction Authority was created.

[7] The competition winner was the Philadelphia-based architectural firm of Mitchell/Giurgola, with the on-site work directed by the Italian-born architect Romaldo Giurgola,[8][9] with a design which involved burying most of the building under Capital Hill, and capping the edifice with an enormous spire topped by a large Australian flag.

The facades, however, included deliberate imitation of some of the patterns of the Old Parliament House, so that there is a slight resemblance despite the massive difference of scale.

Giurgola placed an emphasis on the visual aesthetics of the building by using landscape architect Peter G Rolland to direct civil engineers, a reversal of the traditional roles in Australia.

[7] Horticultural experts from the Australian National Botanic Gardens and a government nursery were consulted on plant selection.

The original idea was for Parliament House to be open free to the public, and the sweeping lawns leading up to the entrances were intended to symbolise this.

[citation needed] The design of Parliament House is anchored around two large curved walls that divides the structure into four quadrants.

The main foyer contains a marble staircase and leads to the Great Hall, which has a large tapestry on display based on the Arthur Boyd painting Untitled (Shoalhaven Landscape).

At the centre of the building between the two chambers is the Members' Hall, which has a water feature directly beneath a glass roof and the large central flag.

It depicts the tracks of several native animals (in white) moving towards the central circle, representing that Canberra is a gathering place.

Around the room are 20 timber marquetry panels depicting Australian flora and fauna, once again proving a link to the land.

The rich marble of the foyer is replaced with soft woods; the cramped columns become a vast open space filled with light.

On the eastern wall of the gallery of the great hall is an embroidery, designed by Kay Lawrence, measuring 15 m long and 65 cm high.

Public access to the visitors' galleries and the Main Committee Room is via an upper level reached by marble staircases ascending from the entrance foyer.

The larger is the vice-regal chair, used by the governor-general during the opening of Parliament, with the smaller used by distinguished guests, such as foreign leaders.

[35] New Parliament House has been warmly received for its beauty and democratic symbolism, particularly the grass-covered roof that allows visitor access.

Member for Fenner, Andrew Leigh has praised the way "the building was constructed to emerge out of Capitol Hill – rather than sitting atop it as an imposing structure".

[40] In practice, this meant it was no longer possible for backbenchers to bump into ministers while passing through the corridors of parliament,[41] increasing a sense of detachment between the two groups.

Inevitably, due to its central location, Kings Hall became a bustling hub where people met and talked,[37] and a place where politicians could mingle with the public and the press gallery.

In contrast, the new building situates the library and refreshment rooms at great distance from the two chambers,[37] and Member's Hall, the foyer that connects the House and the Senate, is not open to the public.

Members would often only meet their opponents in the adversarial environment of the debating chamber, and many former parliamentarians believe this has heightened the sectarian nature of parliamentary politics in Australia.

[42][38] Don Watson, speech-writer for former Prime Minister Paul Keating, writes:[43] The place lacks red blood cells.

As with dogs which meet only through a fence and cannot sniff each other's backsides, it deepens the everyday animus.Paul Keating has lamented walking the corridors of New Parliament House "not feeling like you were part of anything".

[42] Another former prime minister, Malcolm Turnbull, expressed concern the "badly designed" structure lacks "collision space [that] brings people together to ... compromise and agree and discuss.

[42] These concerns have been echoed by many former parliamentarians, including Malcolm Fraser,[37] Tom Uren,[39] Peter Walsh,[44][45] Barry Jones,[37] and Bob Carr.

[38] Walsh, a former finance minister in the Hawke government has said the building is "an antiseptic, isolated and impersonal place, compared with its predecessor".

In 2011, the Department of Parliamentary Services commissioned a pilot 43.3 kW photovoltaic system on the roof of Parliament House in Canberra.

According to the Department of Parliamentary Services, the system was switched on in June 2011 and has performed as expected by providing enough power for lighting in both the House of Representatives and the Senate.

In 1992, a vehicle was driven through the glass front doors into the Great Hall[50] In 2024, Australian Federal Police allowed people to climb the building and protest.