argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Covid-19: Emergency Transport and Travel Measures in London Boroughs — House of Commons, 2020-11-04
Topic: Transportation
Rachel Helen Maclean (Conservative, Centre-right): It is a pleasure to respond to the debate. I congratulate the hon. Member for Ealing Central and Acton (Dr Huq) on raising this important subject, which has attracted wide interest from colleagues in all parts of the House. The title of the debate is "Covid-19: Emergency Transport and Travel Measures in London Boroughs", so it is important that I welcome her support for the generous help the Mayor of London has been given for Transport for London, thanks to the Conservative Government; it will keep London going throughout the pandemic. I put it on record that it was certainly not the Government’s plan to extend the congestion zone. That is a matter for the Mayor of London I move on to the subject at hand, about which the hon. Lady addressed a number of questions to me. I am pleased that she is a keen cyclist—we start from a point of agreement there—and I am sure that she welcomes the Government’s record investment in cycling and walking. That is the biggest ever investment to get people out of cars, clean up our dirty air and decarbonise our transport sector.
Covid-19: Emergency Transport and Travel Measures in London Boroughs — House of Commons, 2020-11-04
Topic: Environment
David Timothy Simmonds (Conservative, Centre-right): The Minister refers to the need to clean up our dirty air, which many of us regard as a high priority, particularly in the capital. Does she agree that it is necessary to make the enforcement powers that we give to local authorities sufficiently meaningful, as envisaged by our local council here under the leadership of my hon. Friend the Member for Cities of London and Westminster (Nickie Aiken)? That would ensure that people who behave in an antisocial way by idling engines near schools, for example, receive a penalty commensurate with the damage they are causing to the local environment, children and other nearby pedestrians.
Covid-19: Emergency Transport and Travel Measures in London Boroughs — House of Commons, 2020-11-04
Topic: Transportation
Rachel Helen Maclean (Conservative, Centre-right): I absolutely agree with my hon. Friend. It is right that we focus all our attention as a Government on keeping our air clean through measures such as the one he mentions and others Our active travel fund was set up to encourage more active travel, particularly while public transport capacity was constrained. That is why we announced £225 million of active travel funding in May. Many of the points made by hon. Members relate to feedback from their constituents. It is important that those queries and concerns are raised and addressed in the House The Government published clear guidance to set out what is expected of local authorities when making changes to road layouts to encourage cycling and walking. Low traffic neighbourhoods are a collection of measures, including road closures to motor traffic, designed to remove the rat-running traffic that can blight residential roads. They deliver a wide range of benefits for local communities The Government have consistently made clear to local authorities the importance of consulting on such schemes, which is key to delivering a scheme that works for all. As the hon. Member for Ealing Central and Acton said, it is about taking local communities with us.
Covid-19: Emergency Transport and Travel Measures in London Boroughs — House of Commons, 2020-11-04
Topic: Transportation
Theresa Anne Villiers (Conservative, Centre-right): I express great enthusiasm and support for pro-cycling measures, but I have real reservations about, for example, a pop-up cycle lane on Park Lane when there is a parallel one through the park, or a pop-up cycle lane on Euston Road. It seems that, without generating real benefits for cyclists, we are undermining the ability to get around this great city. London is such a huge motor of our economy that the last thing we want to do is damage productivity or connectivity in the capital at this difficult time.
Covid-19: Emergency Transport and Travel Measures in London Boroughs — House of Commons, 2020-11-04
Topic: Transportation
Rachel Helen Maclean (Conservative, Centre-right): I absolutely agree with my right hon. Friend that the schemes need to be designed with care and with respect for the dynamics of the local area. Local authorities are free to make their own decisions about the streets under their care. It is for them to deliver schemes in line with legislation and good practice, including engagement and consultation, and it would be inappropriate for a Government Department to intervene in matters of local democratic accountability Local authorities have always had responsibility for managing their roads. They have the powers and the autonomy to do so. Central Government have no remit or powers to intervene in the delivery of local road schemes.
Covid-19: Emergency Transport and Travel Measures in London Boroughs — House of Commons, 2020-11-04
Topic: Transportation
Nicola Jane Aiken (Conservative, Centre-right): I am interested to hear what the Minister has said about local authorities having the ability and the right to do that. In the capital, however, we have red routes that are managed by TfL under the Mayor. My right hon. Friend the Member for Chipping Barnet (Theresa Villiers) mentioned Park Lane in my constituency. The Mayor of London and TfL gave Westminster City Council four hours’ notice that they were putting in that cycle lane. Local authorities have to be held to account, but so do Mayors and the likes of Transport for London. Does the Minister agree?
Covid-19: Emergency Transport and Travel Measures in London Boroughs — House of Commons, 2020-11-04
Topic: Transportation
Rachel Helen Maclean (Conservative, Centre-right): I absolutely agree with my hon. Friend. The Mayor of London has considerable powers and influence over the roads in the capital. The Department for Transport cannot direct a local authority to halt a scheme, but the local authority in the area of the hon. Member for Ealing Central and Acton could do that itself and make changes to it.
Covid-19: Emergency Transport and Travel Measures in London Boroughs — House of Commons, 2020-11-04
Topic: Transportation
Rachel Helen Maclean (Conservative, Centre-right): I will respond to the hon. Lady’s point about the letter from the Transport Secretary. I think she is referring to the fact that we have already delivered one tranche of funding, and those authorities that have demonstrated genuine plans to consult local communities and embrace good design principles will receive a second tranche, or in some cases more funding than their indicative allocation. Authorities that have not been able to demonstrate that to the same extent will receive less, and in some cases considerably less. We in the Department want to take people with us. We recognise the benefits of cycling and walking schemes, and where those have been delivered successfully, which they have been in many areas up and down the country, they have delivered considerable benefits to the local environment, the local economy, and local communities. That is a good thing, and we want to back it. In the time remaining to me—literally 30 seconds—let me say that I am grateful for the opportunity to discuss this important issue, and I would be delighted if the hon. Lady would like to write to me or meet me. I will also invite other colleagues who have responsibility for some of the other areas to which she has referred in this debate. Question put and agreed to.
Defence Helicopters: Domestic Manufacture — House of Commons, 2020-09-21
Topic: Labor
Christopher Lionel John Loder (Conservative, Centre-right): Many of my constituents in West Dorset work for Leonardo Helicopters in Yeovil, where redundancies have recently been announced. That is of great concern to me, my constituents and those of my hon. Friend the Member for Yeovil (Mr Fysh). What is the Minister doing to support the company?
Armed Forces Capability: Future Security Threats — House of Commons, 2020-09-21
Topic: International Affairs
Robert Ben Lobban Wallace (Conservative, Centre-right): Hezbollah is proscribed—the political wing as well as the military wing. Real, New and Continuity IRA, and all the other dissident republican groups, are also proscribed. The point that the hon. Gentleman really highlights is that the malign activity of Iran has not stopped. People who think that that does not get back to us on our streets should look at that latest operation, which showed New IRA reaching out in Lebanon or working with Hezbollah and other actors potentially aligned to Iran to potentially inflict murder and death on these streets, either here or in Northern Ireland. We should not forget that. Old habits die hard. These people are now potentially subject to judicial trial, and I cannot do anything to threaten that, but we should point to the facts that he highlights and show that our adversaries link up around the world.
Beirut: Humanitarian Support — House of Commons, 2020-09-21
Topic: International Affairs
Thomas William Randall (Conservative, Centre-right): I welcome the MOD’s humanitarian response to the disaster in Beirut, but it is important that aid actually reaches the people who need it and is used for the benefit of the people. For example, a donation of tea by Sri Lanka for the victims of the blast was distributed to the families of presidential guards. Can my right hon. Friend tell me how he is going to ensure that aid reaches the people who need it, and also how important defence diplomacy has been in providing that support?
Veterans Welfare Service — House of Commons, 2020-09-21
Topic: Social Welfare
John Luther Mercer (Conservative, Centre-right): I pay tribute to the Commando Training Centre Royal Marines. I was down there in March, and it really is at the cusp, as it were, of family welfare. We have seen under this Government a significant transition to looking after our people through a number of schemes that they are benefiting from. When it comes to extra support, we have moved a lot of our veterans UK services online. We provide an extra £6 million in funding to the charity sector, but of course there is always more to do.
Veterans Welfare Service — House of Commons, 2020-09-21
Topic: Social Welfare
Alan Mak (Conservative, Centre-right): Captain Tom Moore’s fundraising was an inspiration to us all, reflecting the public’s continued strong support for our veterans. What additional welfare support is my hon. Friend’s Department providing to veterans in Havant and across the country to access vital services and to find work?
Veterans Welfare Service — House of Commons, 2020-09-21
Topic: Labor
John Luther Mercer (Conservative, Centre-right): There is an unprecedented number of options at the moment for two things that my hon. Friend mentions. One is dealing with mental health challenges and other is around work. On mental health, we brought online earlier this year the complex treatment service, which runs alongside our transition, intervention and liaison service. I am bringing the high intensity service online later this year, and when that is there, I am comfortable that we will have a world-class level of mental health support for our veterans. When it comes to getting people into work, there have never been more initiatives. I am clear that the single biggest factor that improves the life chances of our veterans is having a job. There are some extremely good examples around now, mirrored of course by the civil service with the guaranteed interview scheme.
Veterans Welfare Service — House of Commons, 2020-09-21
Topic: Government Operations
John Luther Mercer (Conservative, Centre-right): The reason we are doing that is very clear. I am aware that, within Government, we are very good at doing reviews, but seeing the impact of those reviews in the real world is something else. What I have asked to do with the Wigston review is to find out where we are with it one year on. The review was not for external organisations; it was an internal report that addressed some serious shortcomings. This review is very clearly shining a light on the Department, showing where we are doing well and where we are doing not so well, and I would be more than happy to share that with the hon. Lady.
Armed Forces: Recruitment and Retention — House of Commons, 2020-09-21
Topic: Labor
James Stephen Heappey (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Gentleman tempts me to pre-empt the decisions of the Prime Minister and the integrated review. However, I can assure him that recruiting targets remain as they were, and that while the sun is shining we will be making hay.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2020-09-21
Topic: International Affairs
Robert Ben Lobban Wallace (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend is absolutely right to point out the malign activity of the Iran state in using both proxies and, indeed, the IRGC directly either to harass shipping going about its lawful business or to enable terrorist groups in the region. It does not help any of the peace we seek in that region; nor does it help Iran to join the table of civilised nations, which it aspires to join. The IR will look exactly at those things—at threat; defined around threat—whether that is Iranian malign activity, Russian activity on Europe’s borders or, indeed, terrorist threats around the world. It is important that that leads the review. That is what I have committed to, and right in the middle of that will be Iran and the IRGC.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2020-09-21
Topic: Transportation
Jeremy Mark Quin (Conservative, Centre-right): As the hon. Gentleman knows, although that road runs through MOD land, it is an adopted road. Having said that, MOD contractors have filled in potholes and cleared ditches and culverts, and we will see what we can do. I am more than happy to meet the hon. Gentleman.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2020-09-21
Topic: Labor
John Luther Mercer (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank the hon. Lady for her continued work on this issue. I am clear that getting veterans into employment is the single biggest factor that improves their life chances when they leave. We now have a system that is light years away from where it used to be. We can always do more. We are bringing in another manifesto pledge to ensure that there is a guaranteed interview scheme for veterans in the civil service, and I am always open to ideas to expand that where we can.
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2020-09-21
Topic: Social Welfare
Simon Richard Clarke (Conservative, Centre-right): The whole country will recognise the unenviable choices that the Government face at this time. Whatever further measures are in contemplation for the days ahead, may I issue a plea for proportionality? Does the Secretary of State agree that human beings in a free society must have a right to some social contact as they go about their daily lives, even at this difficult time?
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2020-09-21
Topic: Social Welfare
Matthew John David Hancock (Conservative, Centre-right): I agree with that 100%. We put in place support bubbles for single households—those who live alone—during the lockdown precisely for that reason. I remember having a Zoom with a whole load of people and somebody said, "I haven’t seen anybody in person for four months," and I thought that could not be good or right. We have put in place support bubbles for single households for that purpose and of course bear such impacts in mind when we take the decisions we take.
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2020-09-21
Topic: Education
Matthew John David Hancock (Conservative, Centre-right): Yes, giving 10 tests to all schools across the country has proved very popular, according to the feedback that I have had. I am very glad to hear that that is true in my hon. Friend’s part of the world as well. Of course we will continue that, with the right level of tests being sent out to the right types of schools in the right places, and I will make sure that we take into account rurality as one of those factors.
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2020-09-21
Topic: Social Welfare
Matthew John David Hancock (Conservative, Centre-right): Yes, I can confirm that. The exemption means that, for instance, if grandparents look after children to provide childcare, where that is a continuous childcare relationship—that is the legal definition—that will be exempt, in the same way that paid-for childcare will be exempt. This therefore does not allow for people to have children staying with others and, as I said in my statement, parties and play dates. It allows, where a family member or other undertakes unpaid childcare that is akin to paid childcare, that they can be exempted. I know how much many people rely on this to be able to get to work, and I am really glad we have been able to make this progress.
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2020-09-21
Topic: Social Welfare
Matthew John David Hancock (Conservative, Centre-right): I entirely agree with my hon. Friend. Right across the board, it is critical that we are constantly learning about both what went well and what did not go well. The social care winter plan that was published last week has been developed with the sector. I visited a care home on Friday and heard from the people there about what they have learned about how policy is developed to make sure that we protect people in care homes as much as possible.
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2020-09-21
Topic: Social Welfare
James Michael Davies (Conservative, Centre-right): The self-isolation support payment of £500 comes into force next Monday for those on lower incomes who cannot work from home and stand to lose income. Of course, it is being distributed through local councils in England. Given that local government is a devolved matter, has my right hon. Friend had conversations with the Welsh Government about replicating the policy in Wales?
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2020-09-21
Topic: Social Welfare
Matthew John David Hancock (Conservative, Centre-right): Yes, the UK Government will be providing the funding so that the devolved Administrations are able to put similar support in place. My right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster spoke to the First Minister of Wales over the weekend to ensure that in Wales people can get the level of support that we are introducing in England.
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2020-09-21
Topic: Government Operations
Matthew John David Hancock (Conservative, Centre-right): Yes. We need the scale of the national system and the resonance of the local system and the local knowledge. We are increasingly driving things in that direction, and I would love to talk to my hon. Friend, who is incredibly knowledgeable in these matters, to see what more we can do.
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2020-09-21
Topic: Social Welfare
Anne-Marie Belinda Trevelyan (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank the Secretary of State for his and his officials’ incredible efforts over the last few days that have meant he was able to make the statement today that informal childcare will sit alongside formal childcare to allow those selfless grandparents across the north-east and elsewhere where local restrictions have to be brought in to make sure, out of the goodness of their hearts and the love of their families, that their sons and daughters can go to work—often low-paid, seasonal work with difficult hours. I thank him for that. Does he also agree that it is for all of us to be selfless, not selfish, as we try to get to grips with the second wave?
United Kingdom Internal Market Bill — House of Commons, 2020-09-21
Topic: International Affairs
Robin Caspar Walker (Conservative, Centre-right): Thank you, Mr Evans. I am pleased to be opening this detailed consideration of part 5 of the Bill, which deals with matters relating to the Northern Ireland Protocol. I welcome this opportunity to discuss these provisions and the important issues they raise in depth today. Before I turn to the specific clauses and amendments in this group, let me begin by making it clear that the Northern Ireland protocol to the withdrawal agreement is designed to recognise and protect the needs and unique circumstances of Northern Ireland. Central to that is ensuring that the Belfast/Good Friday agreement, its successor agreements, and the gains of the peace process are protected. But, above all, we must ensure that the delicate balance between all communities in Northern Ireland is maintained and that the UK Government pursue policies for sustained growth and stability in Northern Ireland. Those have always been and will remain this Government’s priorities Through this Bill, we are acting to uphold those priorities and deliver the commitments we made in our election manifesto that we would provide unfettered access between Northern Ireland and Great Britain and "maintain and strengthen the integrity and smooth operation of our internal market." The protocol also explicitly depends on the consent of the people of Northern Ireland for its continued existence. As we implement the protocol, that must be kept in mind. Those commitments are, of course, entirely in accord with the protocol itself, which makes it clear that, among other things, Northern Ireland remains part of the United Kingdom’s customs territory, that nothing in the protocol prevents unfettered access from Northern Ireland to the rest of the UK market, and that in its application the protocol should impact as little as possible on the everyday life of communities in both Ireland and Northern Ireland.
United Kingdom Internal Market Bill — House of Commons, 2020-09-21
Topic: Foreign Trade
Robin Caspar Walker (Conservative, Centre-right): My right hon. Friend is of course right about that, and we still hope to strike a free trade agreement with the EU. I also point out that these issues can and should be resolved through the Joint Committee—I will come back to that Both the UK and the EU signed up to the protocol on the basis I just outlined. We are committed to implementing the protocol and we have been working hard to ensure that it is done in a way that delivers the promises that have been made. That includes working with the EU to reach agreement through the Joint Committee process in a number of areas that the protocol left unresolved, and we very much hope that agreement can be reached shortly. But if it is not, the harmful legal defaults contained in some interpretations of the protocol, which were never intended to be used, would be activated. The consequences for Northern Ireland in that scenario would be very damaging. We cannot and will not run that risk The provisions we are considering today will therefore ensure that in any scenario, we will protect Northern Ireland’s place in the United Kingdom; ensure that businesses based in Northern Ireland have unfettered access to the rest of the United Kingdom; and ensure that there is no legal confusion or ambiguity in UK law about the interpretation of the state aid elements of the Northern Ireland protocol.