argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation and Liability for Housing Standards) Bill — House of Commons, 2018-01-19
Topic: Social Welfare
Edmund Francis Hughes (Conservative, Centre-right): I completely endorse the hon. Gentleman’s comments. The YMCA took people from 16 years of age—sometimes previously looked-after children—and it was incredibly important that the accommodation was of the highest standard. I am grateful to the HCA for giving the YMCA the money to do that.
Stalking Protection Bill — House of Commons, 2018-01-19
Topic: Law and Crime
Sarah James (Wollaston) (Conservative, Centre-right): I beg to move, That the Bill be now read a Second time Stalking is an insidious form of harassment, characterised by fixation and obsession. The relentless nature of the unwanted contact from perpetrators, which sometimes continues for many years, can make it feel completely inescapable. It is often directed not only at the intended victim, but at all those around them—their family, friends, neighbours and colleagues. It can seriously affect both the physical and the mental health of victims, leaving them feeling isolated and fearful. It can also escalate, as we know, to murder and rape. It is much more common than many people realise. About one in five women and one in 10 men will experience some kind of stalking behaviour in their adult lifetime, according to the crime survey for England and Wales. However, it typically takes about 100 episodes of stalking for victims to come forward It is an honour to promote this private Member’s Bill for better and earlier protection for victims of these terrible crimes. I want to start by paying tribute to the very many individuals and organisations that have come forward to support this Bill and to advise. Many of them have spoken with great courage about the devastating personal consequences for themselves, including, I am sorry to say, personal, tragic loss. It is with all of those individuals in mind that I promote this Bill. I am also very grateful to the Minister for her personal support; to her team for the support and advice they have given me; and to Members across the House for their support and advice on the needs of victims In order to make progress with this Bill, we should acknowledge the progress that has already been made. Two new stalking offences were brought forward in 2012, and it is encouraging that 959 prosecutions were commenced in 2016-17. Progress was also made in increasing the maximum sentence to 10 years in the Policing and Crime Act 2017. I pay special tribute to my hon. Friend the Member for Cheltenham (Alex Chalk) for his work in bringing that about There remains in the law, however, a serious gap when it comes to victims of what is known as stranger stalking, by which I mean those who are stalked by someone who is not a former or current intimate partner. Those victims of stalking do not have recourse to the protections available under the existing protection order regime. That is well recognised, which is why I think there is widespread support for the Bill. If we can step in at an earlier stage, perhaps we will have a better opportunity to prevent stalking before the behaviour can become so deeply engrained.
Stalking Protection Bill — House of Commons, 2018-01-19
Topic: Law and Crime
Sarah James (Wollaston) (Conservative, Centre-right): The Bill specifically notes that acts carried out from outside this country will also be taken into account, particularly with regard to online stalking. The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right and I thank him for making that point Although the proposed stalking protection orders would be civil orders, there would be a criminal penalty for breach. They are not intended to replace a prosecution for stalking where the criminal threshold has been met, but we all recognise that it can take time to fully gather the evidence and present a case for court, and during that time victims can be especially vulnerable. They are intended to act not only in those types of cases, but perhaps where the criminal threshold has not been met but it is recognised that the acts are at risk of escalating. Importantly, the Bill allows for the onus to be taken off the victim, because the police will be able to apply for the protection orders on their behalf It is also important that the penalties for criminal breach have real teeth, with a maximum sentence of up to five years. The civil protection orders will allow us to put in place a bespoke regime of not only prohibitions but requirements on the perpetrators, setting out very clearly what they must not do—in other words, stop contacting not only the victim but those around them—and setting out the ways in which that might take place. In some cases, perpetrators are not well, so the Bill will also allow the court to set a requirement that they attend a mental health assessment. There is also a notification requirement: perpetrators would have to give notification of all the names and aliases that they used in order to stalk their victims, and their address. None of those important protections will be of any benefit, however, if the police do not know about them and do not have the required training, expertise and willingness to exercise them Another purpose of a private Member’s Bill such as this is to explore the issues throughout the criminal justice system to ensure that everyone takes them seriously. Stalking should not be trivialised by references to someone’s having an "admirer"; there is nothing romantic about it. It is also important to recognise patterns of behaviour. Each individual action may in itself appear trivial, but the pattern should be viewed in its entirety. I know that the Minister is personally committed to acting on the findings in "Living in fear", a joint report from Her Majesty’s Crown Prosecution Service inspectorate and Her Majesty’s inspectorate of constabulary on the police response to harassment and stalking, and I hope that she will comment further on it. We need to improve the entire system of that response, and I am grateful to her for her personal commitment.
Stalking Protection Bill — House of Commons, 2018-01-19
Topic: Law and Crime
Rebecca Faye Clark (Pow) (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend is making a powerful case. She may have heard Emily Maitlis talking on the radio this morning about how she was stalked for 20 years. She said that she felt that the current legislation was not fit for purpose, and did not provide her with any protection. Does the Bill not seek to address that?
Stalking Protection Bill — House of Commons, 2018-01-19
Topic: Law and Crime
Sarah James (Wollaston) (Conservative, Centre-right): Absolutely, and I pay tribute to Emily Maitlis for her courage. Anyone who reads her personal victim impact statement will see that not only the person being stalked but that person’s entire family is affected. She has been exceptionally courageous in coming forward to talk about her experience and in raising awareness. It is also true that stalking does not just affect people who are in the public eye; it can affect anyone, and sometimes after a relatively trivial contact. Victims are often made to feel responsible, or guilty. We have to break that cycle, and take the issue seriously I will cut short my remarks now, because I know that many other Members wish to speak. I thank all colleagues for their support for the Bill.
Stalking Protection Bill — House of Commons, 2018-01-19
Topic: Law and Crime
Nigel Paul Huddleston (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Lady is making an important point, particularly about internet stalking. In terms of the SPOs, does she agree that some kind of internet tracking capability must be included, as so much of this activity now takes place online?
Stalking Protection Bill — House of Commons, 2018-01-19
Topic: Law and Crime
Neil John O'Brien (Conservative, Centre-right): I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Totnes (Dr Wollaston) on introducing this important Bill and on her passionate championing of this important cause One reason I support the Bill is that a family in my constituency were cruelly robbed of their daughter by a stalker. Alice Ruggles was murdered in 2016 by Trimaan Dhillon, who was sentenced to life imprisonment last year. Alice had been in a relationship with him, and the relationship became controlling over time. He tried to distance her from her friends and family. After they broke up, his behaviour towards her became increasingly sinister Alice twice told the police that Trimaan was harassing her. He was given a police information notice, but it did not stop his obsessive and escalating behaviour. It later emerged that the police had previously given him a restraining order for harassing another girlfriend—it is not clear the police knew that at the time of Alice’s murder Alice’s family established the Alice Ruggles Trust to try to make the case for changes to support victims of stalking, including a register of stalkers, so I am pleased to support the Bill today. The Bill will fill a clear gap in the protective order regime to protect people like Alice in the future. It will enable effective action against stalkers whose actions have not yet provably gone over the criminal threshold My concern is that at the moment too many people who pose a real threat are being repeatedly cautioned or given a police information notice, or action is simply not being taken against them. Only 1% of stalking cases are recorded by the police, and victims reported being unsatisfied with the police response. For example, research by the Suzy Lamplugh Trust found that 43% of people who have reported stalking to the police found the police response to be either not very helpful or not helpful at all, and only 12.7% of recorded cases reach a conviction in court I hope that by creating this new tool for the police, the new stalking protection order, the Bill will help to solve that problem. The sanctions it will create will help to stop stalkers whose behaviour is escalating, and the prohibitions it creates will help victims to live without fear, particularly where the police are building a case. As well as those direct benefits, I hope the Bill’s introduction might also be a catalyst for the police to change their handling of stalking cases more generally. A number of hon. Members have already referred to the important report by HMIC and the CPS, "Living in fear", which found that people who have suffered from repeated harassment or stalking are frequently being "let down" by under-recording, inconsistent services and a lack of understanding in the criminal justice system I hope that the Bill will trigger police forces to review how they handle stalking. I hope that all chief constables and police commissioners in this country will be listening closely to today’s debate and will be observing the passage of the Bill.
Stalking Protection Bill — House of Commons, 2018-01-19
Topic: Law and Crime
Neil John O'Brien (Conservative, Centre-right): Yes, I do; the hon. Lady makes an extremely important point. As I was saying, the crucial thing is not just having this important new tool, which the Bill will create, but using it as a further catalyst to changes in the way the police handle something that, as my hon. Friend the Member for Cheltenham (Alex Chalk) pointed out, was not even a crime until 2012. In particular, I hope that the police will take account of the best practice guidance produced by the charity Paladin, which is extremely important. In conclusion, this Bill is a really important piece of legislation. The flexibilities it contains will allow stalking protection orders to be useful in a wide variety of circumstances. I believe that it will both improve lives and save lives, and I support it in the strongest possible way.
Stalking Protection Bill — House of Commons, 2018-01-19
Topic: Law and Crime
Alexander John Gervase Chalk (Conservative, Centre-right): In the case of my constituent—a GP in Cheltenham—the only way in which she could begin the process of rebuilding her life was to know that the person who had been tormenting her was behind bars. We should not do it willy-nilly, but there are occasions when people have to be locked up, and this legislation should not be a substitute for custody. Does my hon. Friend agree?
Stalking Protection Bill — House of Commons, 2018-01-19
Topic: Law and Crime
Kevin John Foster (Conservative, Centre-right): I absolutely agree. This is not a substitute for someone being locked up or paying the price that Parliament has set down for certain crimes. Victims need to see justice done. As with the previous Bill we discussed, this legislation provides an additional power for dealing with poor behaviour and poor conduct in society. It is not an alternative power for dealing with poor conduct. I welcome the Minister to her place, and I am interested in hearing how she will ensure that with guidance issued to the police through the Home Office. How will the Department make it clear to the police that this is an additional provision that takes their powers further? It is not a choice between prosecution or this; it is now prosecution and this. This Bill covers behaviour that is not quite caught by current criminal offences. It is an expansion, not an alternative. The Bill does include penalties of imprisonment for continuing to breach the orders, and that is appropriate. There are some people who will not stop even after many remedies, and they probably need the threat of prison to put them off This Bill is welcome. It is an appropriate and proportionate step, and I am interested in how the police will implement it in my constituency of Torbay. It provides that the chief officer can apply for an order only in respect of someone in their area. How will the Minister ensure that there is co-operation between police forces in cases where the person resides outside the area or is being a nuisance to someone who goes between two areas? Those questions are about making the Bill an effective piece of legislation. How will the Minister ensure that victims of stalking—as with victims of domestic violence—feel that they can safely come forward and give their point of view, and that this new power is well known about? If people are not aware of the law, they may not know what rights they have to ask the police force to take action I am conscious of the time, and I have absolutely no intention of continuing to a point at which I would talk this Bill out. [Interruption.] I hear some enthusiastic approval from the Opposition Benches; I will conclude in the very near future I appreciate and welcome this Bill. I hope that I get the opportunity to serve on the Committee and take part in some of the detailed scrutiny of exactly how this will work and move forward. That applies particularly to the guidance that is issued to chief police officers when they make these decisions, because we want this power to be effective, and an addition, not an alternative, to the existing criminal law.
School Holidays (Meals and Activities) Bill — House of Commons, 2018-01-19
Topic: Technology
Nadhim Zahawi (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank the right hon. Gentleman for dealing with this issue through an evidence-led strategy. He agrees with the Government that we need to conduct the research and the pilots in order to understand what is happening.
School Holidays (Meals and Activities) Bill — House of Commons, 2018-01-19
Topic: Technology
Nadhim Zahawi (Conservative, Centre-right): It is early days. We are currently considering how we will conduct the research, and when we have conducted that research we will, hopefully, be able to tell the House how we will conduct the pilots.
School Holidays (Meals and Activities) Bill — House of Commons, 2018-01-19
Topic: Education
Nadhim Zahawi (Conservative, Centre-right): I want to make a little more headway It is important for any provision to take account of local need, so we will seek to ensure that our approach can respond to a variety of circumstances and contexts. For example, we will aim to cover rural as well as urban areas, to work with different types of schools and across educational phases, and to ensure that provision can be accessed by children with special educational needs and disabilities. We will build links with and between local partners by, for instance, assisting voluntary and community sector organisations to work collaboratively with schools to achieve those aims.
School Holidays (Meals and Activities) Bill — House of Commons, 2018-01-19
Topic: Education
Nadhim Zahawi (Conservative, Centre-right): I would very much like to see that research. We will both collate research already done and commission new research. We want to get this right The research programme will begin immediately and will include some initial work in the 2018 summer holidays followed by further piloting in the 2019 Easter and summer holidays. The Government work will investigate how to provide a balanced, enriched programme for the most disadvantaged school-age pupils The debate stood adjourned (Standing Order No. 11(2)). Ordered, That the debate be resumed on Friday 27 April.
Rail Connectivity — House of Commons, 2018-01-19
Topic: Transportation
Nusrat Munir Ul-Ghani (Conservative, Centre-right): I shall make some progress because the hon. Lady will want some time to respond People in Leigh will be able to access HS2 services from multiple locations, including Wigan, Manchester airport and Manchester Piccadilly station, which is readily accessible from Leigh by public transport, including by use of the new busway. HS2 will join the west coast main line at Golborne, south of Wigan, as well as at Crewe. By linking to the west coast main line, HS2 will deliver benefits to areas such as Preston and Lancaster in north-west England, all the way up to Glasgow, Edinburgh and the rest of Scotland. The growth strategies that are developed by local areas will also play an important part in spreading the regeneration benefits of HS2 beyond those places it serves directly I hope I have answered the hon. Lady’s questions and addressed her concerns, and that I have assured the House that the best way to drive railway improvements is to support our strategic vision for rail, which includes the north of England having, in Transport for the North, a new and powerful voice to articulate its future transport needs I apologise that I had not realised that the hon. Lady cannot respond; I will take an intervention now.
Rail Connectivity — House of Commons, 2018-01-19
Topic: Transportation
Nusrat Munir Ul-Ghani (Conservative, Centre-right): We have discussed a variety of ways that investment is being put into the hon. Lady’s area. The plans are in place now; they are not just for future generations. People say that when they talk about HS2, but there is solid investment in the region and in the hon. Lady’s constituency, be that in busways or the rail network. The investment is in place. The work that followed the meetings with the previous Rail Minister will continue, and I encourage the hon. Lady to speak to the people responsible who have the powers locally and to continue to engage with them Question put and agreed to.
Tax Havens: Developing Countries — House of Commons, 2018-01-17
Topic: International Affairs
Penelope Mary Mordaunt (Conservative, Centre-right): Mr Speaker, I start by paying tribute to Rebecca Dykes, the DFID staff member killed in such tragic circumstances last month in Beirut. Becky was passionate about helping others, and through her work has improved the lives of some of the most marginalised people in the world. Becky’s family have set up a charitable fund in her name to advance some of the causes Becky cared about so deeply, and my Department is providing support; we will also hold a commemoration next month to celebrate her life. I am sure I speak for the whole House when I say that our thoughts and prayers are with her family and friends during this difficult time The UK continues to lead efforts to strengthen international tax transparency. DFID supports developing countries to benefit from and influence new international standards which help them to tackle tax avoidance and evasion.
Tax Havens: Developing Countries — House of Commons, 2018-01-17
Topic: International Affairs
Penelope Mary Mordaunt (Conservative, Centre-right): One of my first actions, which I set out this week, is to establish a new team to help countries that we are seeking to develop and that are transitioning out of poverty to improve tax collection systems and set up public services. We need to focus on that as well as on alleviating crises and immense poverty. I will be happy to discuss the matter further with the hon. Lady, and it will be one of my priorities.
Tax Havens: Developing Countries — House of Commons, 2018-01-17
Topic: Macroeconomics
Gary Nicholas Streeter (Conservative, Centre-right): Does my right hon. Friend agree that aggressive tax avoidance involving tax havens can be tackled effectively only by collective global action? Will her Department therefore keep the issue high on the agenda at future G8 meetings and will she do all she can to ensure that the UK continues to take a lead?
Tax Havens: Developing Countries — House of Commons, 2018-01-17
Topic: International Affairs
Penelope Mary Mordaunt (Conservative, Centre-right): As I just said, I think we need to do something more hands-on and more practical, so I am dedicating some resource and a team within my Department to focus on that for every nation we work with.
Modern Slavery: Libya — House of Commons, 2018-01-17
Topic: Law and Crime
Alistair James Hendrie Burt (Conservative, Centre-right): After the debate, I asked the organiser of the petition to come in to my office to see me, and she, one of the supporters of the petition and I had a meeting last week, which gave my officials a chance to talk with her about the huge interest and concern that the petition demonstrated. Briefly, the matter worries us considerably. There is work going on across Government in relation to the criminal aspects of the slave auctions, but at the meeting I was also able to outline what we are doing to build capacity, such as—
Modern Slavery: Libya — House of Commons, 2018-01-17
Topic: International Affairs
Alistair James Hendrie Burt (Conservative, Centre-right): Even though time is tight, I must thank my right hon. Friend for the remarkable support he gave to the Foreign Office and the Department for International Development when he was a Whip and his remarkable contribution to Government over the years My right hon. Friend is right. We have a £75 million programme focused on migration along routes from west Africa via the Sahel to Libya. This includes an allocation of £5 million in Libya aimed at providing that aid. He is right to raise this.
Modern Slavery: Libya — House of Commons, 2018-01-17
Topic: International Affairs
Alistair James Hendrie Burt (Conservative, Centre-right): My right hon. Friend the International Development Secretary yesterday inaugurated exactly the programme the right hon. Lady mentions. It is a matter of great concern to the UK, and we are in contact with the Libyan Government about it. I had a high-level meeting in Geneva last week about the issues she raises.
Modern Slavery: Libya — House of Commons, 2018-01-17
Topic: Law and Crime
Alistair James Hendrie Burt (Conservative, Centre-right): My right hon. Friend is quite right. Modern slavery is a key part of my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister’s agenda—we have allotted £150 million to it—and the work of the Church of England, in making sure that people see victims and are attuned to their needs, is vital.