There are just under two weeks left before the new political session begins in the Congress of Deputies and, with it, the return of parliamentarians and ushers to the halls of the Lower House. The latter, responsible for protocol and assisting deputies and visitors, have been wearing suits made in the same workshops as the armor from ‘Gladiator II’ or the coats from ‘The Society of the Snow’ since last November. The Lower House signed a contract with the Madrid-based company Peris Costumes worth 892,956.00 euros, according to the Official State Gazette (BOE). The contract, which lasts three years, includes dry cleaning services for the suits and the manufacture of 2,498 garments for ushers, maintenance staff, and healthcare workers.
The company, located south of the Community of Madrid, in Algete, produces each suit, button, tie, and jacket of the uniforms, which have not changed their design with the latest contract. The company’s general director, Iñigo Santías, explains to EL PAÍS that most of the clothing they produce is made in their own workshops, where 31 people work, but he emphasizes that there are “very specific garments, such as tie pins” that are made in subcontracted workshops. Each piece is different and the production time varies. They take between thirty minutes and several hours to make each one. “It’s not the same to make a shirt as a jacket,” he highlights.
Santías also details that his company has a lot of experience working with the public sector. “We have been serving public institutions such as INAEM (National Institute of Performing Arts of Madrid) since the company’s beginnings,” he explains. This is because uniforms usually have details that cannot be made by typical textile companies. In the case of this contract, the businessman explains that “it was a tender” in which they won the award, but he stresses that it is a “minor” agreement for his company, as they deal with “much larger” clients than the Congress.
Costume is an essential part of the Parliament’s protocol for more than 150 years. According to information from the Chamber’s Archive collected by this newspaper, the Ushers’ Corps was created in the Internal Government Regulations of 1851, which indicates the division into categories of the, until then, called dependents. It already details here that ushers must wear uniforms, in article 40: “All individuals of the Congress’s servitude, except the tradesmen, will wear uniforms during service acts. The uniform consists of a coat with a gold braid on the collar, blue trousers, and a tricorn hat with a gold loop.” This has changed, mainly because it is now “adapted to the physiology of men and women,” according to the institution’s documents.
Currently, the summer uniform of the 113 ushers who make up the staff consists of a navy blue jacket with a row of golden buttons, which has the constitutional shield on the chest. The jacket has golden braids on the sleeves and has the same shield hand-embroidered on both lapels. The uniform includes a vest made of the same fabric as the jacket, with buttons and shield. Finally, a white shirt and blue trousers, with a golden braid. There is now also the option to wear a skirt, pleated in front, with four golden buttons and the same shield.
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The contract also includes a formal uniform, which is similar to the normal one but with more details, and offers two options: short and long jacket, one for winter and the other for summer. This is the one used on visits such as the Pope’s, who stepped on the Congress carpets last June. The jacket has a fitted tailcoat, with a row of nine golden metal buttons and the regulatory shield. When ushers dress formally, they wear the same white shirt, with the difference that it has golden braids of various sizes on the sleeves. The navy blue trousers are maintained, like the jacket. Every detail is in the hands of this company specialized in costumes for film and series.
Dry cleaning service
Article 53 of the Congress Dependencies Regulations of 1854 records how the maintenance of the costume was at that time, and details: “Workers will be obliged to keep it in good condition, for three years.” It also states that no worker “may wear uniform garments outside service acts.” This remains so: every uniform that enters the Lower House must not be worn beyond those walls. Ushers have lockers inside the Congress to store them, according to parliamentary sources.
The clothing only leaves the building when taken to the dry cleaning service; it is collected every two weeks to be washed. The annual ironing estimate is reflected in the contract specifications, which this media outlet has accessed. The total sum is 6,996 ironings per year. They will collect the garments every 15 days in two different Congress buildings, except for healthcare suits, which will be collected daily.
The specifications also detail that the company must provide two garment bags for each worker (one for collection and one for delivery) with a box for proper identification. The workers’ suits do not share space with those worn by Hollywood actors and actresses, neither in the dry cleaners nor in the warehouses, but they are made by the same hands in a workshop in southern Madrid.
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