argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Points of Order — House of Commons, 2016-02-23
Topic: Public Lands
Alexander Cunningham (Labour, Centre-left): On a point of order, Mr Speaker. There appears to be considerable confusion in the Government over which Department is responsible for making an application to the EU solidarity fund for assistance for flood-hit communities across the north of England This is what I have found out from vague answers to parliamentary questions. In December 2015, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office said that it was a Department for Communities and Local Government issue. In January, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills said that it was a Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs issue. A week later, the Leader of the House agreed. In early February, the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said that she had not ruled out making an application, but a week later one of her civil servants wrote to me saying again that it was a DCLG matter Whoever is responsible, the deadline for an application is just days away. The Government’s confusion and subsequent failure to act will potentially deny our communities hundreds of millions of pounds of much needed help. Will you please encourage the Government to sort this out and get a Minister here to make a statement, so that we can hold them to account?
Welfare Reform and Work Bill — House of Commons, 2016-02-23
Topic: Other
Lindsay Harvey Hoyle (Labour, Centre-left): I must draw the House’s attention to the fact that financial privilege is involved in Lords amendments 2 to 6, 8, 9 and 11. If the House agrees to any of these amendments, I shall ensure that the appropriate entry is made in the Journal. Before Clause 4
Welfare Reform and Work Bill — House of Commons, 2016-02-23
Topic: Mixed Topics
Deborah Angela Elspeth Marie Abrahams (Labour, Centre-left): I thank my hon. Friend for his intervention. I absolutely agree with him What has been hidden so far is that this cut will also affect disabled people who are in low-paid work. Currently, 116,000 disabled people in low-paid work and working more than 16 hours a week receive the disabled workers element of working tax credit—about £60 a week—which they get as a result of being on disability living allowance or personal independence payments. They need that payment to cover the additional costs that they face as a result of work. Under universal credit, the limited capability for work component is the main additional financial support for disabled people in work and is meant to cover those extra costs. However, unlike the disability element of working tax credit, that is available only after working disabled people have been through a work capability assessment. If the Government go ahead and remove UC’s limited capability for work component from working disabled people, the inevitable impact will be disabled people dropping out of the labour market, thereby increasing, not reducing, the disability employment gap. It will have exactly the opposite effect to the one that the Government say that they want to achieve.
Welfare Reform and Work Bill — House of Commons, 2016-02-23
Topic: Other
Natascha Engel (Labour, Centre-left): Order. Everyone can see that a large number of hon. Members want to speak in the debate, which has to conclude at 5.36 pm. If Members can keep their speeches as brief as possible, we can get everyone in.
Daesh — House of Commons, 2016-01-18
Topic: Mixed Topics
David George Hanson (Labour, Centre-left): For the benefit of the Secretary of State, I do not think that Daesh has any strong points, but I would argue with the Prime Minister’s central argument about there being 70,000 so-called freedom fighters ready to take on Daesh on the ground in Syria. On Tuesday at the Liaison Committee the Prime Minister still could not defend that figure. Can the Secretary of State do so today?
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2016-01-18
Topic: Mixed Topics
Emily Thornberry (Labour, Centre-left): In the past few days, reports of the difficulties faced by veterans suffering from Gulf war syndrome have reminded us how important it is that we recognise the extraordinary sacrifices made by our men and women in uniform. We must ensure that our service people are not only properly rewarded while they are serving, but looked after properly when they leave. What sort of message does the Minister think it sends that the Government have chosen to freeze war pensions at a time when the basic state pension is to be protected by a triple lock and is set to rise by 2.9% this year?
Steel Sector — House of Commons, 2016-01-18
Topic: Mixed Topics
Nicholas Dakin (Labour, Centre-left): It is strange that Redcar did not meet the criteria for exceptional growth funds, but I am pleased the Minister has indicated that they will be used to assist the Greybull Capital interest in long products. The Foreign Secretary stood at that Dispatch Box and said that the Government will judge market economy status through "the prism of steel". Will the Minister confirm that there will be no drawing back from that position?
Steel Sector — House of Commons, 2016-01-18
Topic: Mixed Topics
Nicklaus Thomas-Symonds (Labour, Centre-left): The Minister has spoken about the state aid rules, yet the Italian Government have perfectly permissibly provided assistance to their steel industry on the basis that it constitutes environmental protection. My father worked in Llanwern steelworks for nearly 40 years and I know at first hand the sacrifices that so many steelworker families made over many years. Do they not deserve a Government who are willing to do so much more than this one?
Steel Sector — House of Commons, 2016-01-18
Topic: Mixed Topics
Madeleine Moon (Labour, Centre-left): My constituency is next door to Aberavon. Many of my workforce travel into Aberavon on the A48 to work and have done so for many years. There is a real risk that the critical mass of the steelworks in Port Talbot will be endangered by the job losses. May we have an assurance from the Minister that there will at least be interim relief in business rates? That is the big issue that will make or break the viability of the works and the jobs there.
Steel Sector — House of Commons, 2016-01-18
Topic: Mixed Topics
Stephen John Doughty (Labour, Centre-left): One of the most frustrating experiences for steelworkers in my constituency, throughout south Wales and throughout the United Kingdom, is knowing that the previous Government were warned again and again and again about the challenges facing the industry. The Minister has told us about the actions that she has taken in the last few months—many of which I welcome, as she knows—but can she say, hand on heart, that the previous steel Minister and the Chancellor did everything they could when they were warned again and again and again about the crisis?
Steel Sector — House of Commons, 2016-01-18
Topic: Mixed Topics
Diana Ruth Johnson (Labour, Centre-left): May I ask what the Minister’s assessment is of the optimum level for the strategic steel industry, especially in the light of her comments about wanting to use British steel for major UK infrastructure in the future?
Energy Bill [Lords] — House of Commons, 2016-01-18
Topic: Mixed Topics
Albert Owen (Labour, Centre-left): Does the hon. Gentleman agree that the same logic should apply—local authorities and local communities should have a greater say—when National Grid comes up with a plan to connect a new generation of pylons to the grid? Does he agree that the Government should devolve that responsibility to local authorities?
Energy Bill [Lords] — House of Commons, 2016-01-18
Topic: Mixed Topics
Matthew Thomas Pennycook (Labour, Centre-left): I do not want to cut off the hon. Gentleman as he comes to a conclusion, but if it was so patently obvious to everyone that that was the precise meaning of the manifesto commitment, why was industry taken by surprise?
Energy Bill [Lords] — House of Commons, 2016-01-18
Topic: Domestic Commerce
Matthew Thomas Pennycook (Labour, Centre-left): It might be small, but I hope the hon. Gentleman would agree that projects in which people have invested in good faith and which have local consent should be allowed to proceed, instead of being penalised by the early closure of a scheme that had a fixed end point—2017—in legislation anyway The way the Government have handled the matter of the RO has been hugely damaging and undermined the industry’s trust in the Government’s word. Last January, the industry was told that its investments were safe and that no changes to the rules were proposed, but six months later, despite there being no clear signal in the Conservative manifesto, the Government attempted to do just that.
Energy Bill [Lords] — House of Commons, 2016-01-18
Topic: Mixed Topics
Lisa Eva Nandy (Labour, Centre-left): I am sorry to detain the hon. Gentleman on this matter, but is he really arguing—I cannot honestly believe he is—that, because fracking is incredibly controversial, communities should be denied a voice? Surely that is a reason why communities should be given a say.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2016-01-25
Topic: Mixed Topics
Catherine Jane Smith (Labour, Centre-left): The Minister will be aware of the case of Poppi Worthington, a constituent of my hon. Friend the Member for Barrow and Furness (John Woodcock), and her tragic death. Does she support the calls from both sides of the House for an independent investigation into the circumstances and failings before and after Poppi’s death?
HMRC and Google (Settlement) — House of Commons, 2016-01-25
Topic: Mixed Topics
Dennis Edward Skinner (Labour, Centre-left): Why, on the one hand, should Italy put in a claim for £1 billion from Google while Britain, on the other hand, is prepared to settle for a paltry £130 million? It is not very good for Cameron, is it?
HMRC and Google (Settlement) — House of Commons, 2016-01-25
Topic: Mixed Topics
Alison McGovern (Labour, Centre-left): I and many other Members on this side of the House have seen representatives of small businesses queueing up at our surgeries to complain about the sweetheart deals that big businesses seem to be able to get while they themselves cannot get assistance from HMRC. I wrote to the Minister to ask him to meet me to talk about small businesses, but sadly he said no. May I take this opportunity to ask him again? Please will he meet me to talk about the impact of tax on small businesses in Wirral?
HMRC and Google (Settlement) — House of Commons, 2016-01-25
Topic: Mixed Topics
Andrew John Gwynne (Labour, Centre-left): The Minister is trying to have it both ways. These are companies, not individuals, so the confidentiality excuse does not wash with me. We know what the profits, assets and the liabilities are, because they are in the companies’ accounts. We also know that the corporation tax rate is 20%. On the basis of both those pieces of information, how much does Google actually owe the Exchequer?
Child Refugees in Europe — House of Commons, 2016-01-25
Topic: Immigration
Yvette Cooper (Labour, Centre-left): The aid for refugees, particularly children, is of course welcome, but Save the Children has estimated that 26,000 children have arrived alone in Europe: some who fled alone; some who have been trafficked by gangs, perhaps into prostitution, slavery or the drugs trade; and some separated from parents or family along the way, such as the 10-year-old whose case I heard of who was separated from his parents as a gang pushed them on to a lorry, and they now do not know where he is The Government have said repeatedly that they are looking at the call from across parties and from Save the Children for Britain to take 3,000 lone child refugees, but there has still been no answer, and we hear rumours that they will look only at helping child refugees from camps in the region. That is not enough. In Greece, in Italy and in the Balkans, the reception centres and children’s homes are full, and children are disappearing. The Italian authorities estimate that about 4,000 children who were alone in Italy disappeared last year. I met 11 and 12-year-olds in Calais who were there alone with just one British volunteer looking after them. That is a similar age to my children, and they should not be there alone We should especially be helping those who have family in Britain who are desperate to care for them. Last week, a tribunal ruled that three teenagers and a vulnerable adult should be able to stay with close relatives here while their asylum cases are heard rather than being alone in France because the French system and the Dublin III agreement are not working for lone refugee children. May I urge the Minister to see this judgment as another reason to reform the system so that it helps child refugees? One case that was due to go to the tribunal was unsuccessful—that of a teenager from Afghanistan whose sister lives here. It was unsuccessful because he died, suffocated in a lorry just a few weeks ago, taking crazy risks: because he did not wait for the lawyers; because he was 15 years old and that is what teenagers do This week, many of us will sign the Holocaust Memorial Day book of commitment. Our colleague in the House of Lords, Lord Alf Dubs, was saved from the holocaust by the Kindertransport many generations ago. Now he is asking us, through his Lords amendment, to back Save the Children’s campaign to help a new generation of vulnerable children. Please will the Government agree to this before more children disappear or die? Please let us do our bit again to help child refugees.
Child Refugees in Europe — House of Commons, 2016-01-25
Topic: Immigration
Andrew Murray Burnham (Labour, Centre-left): The thought of any child alone in a foreign country is abhorrent to any parent, but for them to be alone in dangerous conditions—without food, warmth, comfort or protection—is genuinely terrifying. Sadly, that is the reality today for thousands of Syrian children and those fleeing other conflicts. The truth is that some of these frightened young souls are on our own doorstep, as my right hon. Friend the Leader of the Opposition saw for himself at the weekend. No child should be left to fend for themselves, whoever they are and wherever they are. I have no doubt that, when faced with this issue, the vast majority of British people would see a moral duty to act, as the right hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Sir Eric Pickles) has just said I congratulate my right hon. Friend the Member for Normanton, Pontefract and Castleford (Yvette Cooper) on asking the question and welcome the Minister’s commitment to look seriously at the issue, but may I press him on some of the points that my right hon. Friend made? In particular, will he consider children who are here in Europe, as well as those who are in the camps? The Government’s policy to date has been to take only refugees from the region, rather than those who have crossed the sea. Does he not accept that, as the crisis develops, that distinction is becoming harder to maintain There are 26,000 unaccompanied children in Europe today. They cannot, as the Government claim, be described as the fittest and the strongest. They are instead highly vulnerable to trafficking, prostitution and other forms of abuse. They urgently need someone to reach out a hand. I appreciate the concern that doing so could create an unhelpful precedent and an incentive for families to send children alone, but surely that can be dealt with by making it clear that this is an exceptional move and by working with the UNHCR and others to identify children who are genuinely alone This is the biggest humanitarian crisis since the second world war, but instead of playing our full part, the Prime Minister has spent recent weeks stomping around Europe with his own list of demands. Does the Minister not accept that, to countries that are trying to deal with the enormity of this crisis, that might make us look a little selfish and blinkered? By doing more to help our partners in Europe, might not the Prime Minister build good will and get a better hearing for his renegotiation demands As others have said, this week we will remember the awful events of the holocaust and the Kindertransport. Surely now is the time to take inspiration from those British heroes of the last century and act to change the course of history in this.
Child Refugees in Europe — House of Commons, 2016-01-25
Topic: Immigration
Keith Anthony Vaz (Labour, Centre-left): Last year, 300,000 child refugees entered through Greece and 16,000 entered through Italy. The problem has been that the countries at the EU’s external border are just not given the support they need from the European Union. As a result, reception centres have not been opened up in places such as Greece. Will the Minister tell us what has happened with the deal made between the EU and Turkey, which would have provided Turkey with additional resources to try to help us to deal with this terrible crisis?
Child Refugees in Europe — House of Commons, 2016-01-25
Topic: Immigration
Frank Field (Labour, Centre-left): I commend the Minister for his statement about our responsibilities to some of the most vulnerable children, but may I also make a plea for the very poorest in each of our constituencies, who already have almost no hope of getting a decent home, who find social services under huge pressure when it comes to meeting their needs, and have almost no chance of ever getting a place at a school of their choice? When the Government are considering the priorities and the needs of those children, will they also consider that they are committed to bring in 20,000 refugees, and ensure that any proper concessions on this front are taken from that total of 20,000?
Child Refugees in Europe — House of Commons, 2016-01-25
Topic: Immigration
Stephen John Doughty (Labour, Centre-left): I wholeheartedly support the call from Save the Children and my right hon. Friend the Member for Normanton, Pontefract and Castleford (Yvette Cooper), but I want to ask the Minister specifically about the treatment and dignity of children asylum seekers and their families when they arrive in this country. He will be well aware of the concerns expressed about Clearsprings, which operates accommodation in my constituency and in that of my hon. Friend the Member for Cardiff Central (Jo Stevens), stigmatising asylum seekers by forcing them to wear red bands, but I have heard reports of short-notice evictions, lack of female housing workers and asylum seekers being forced to sign documents before seeing properties. Shockingly, I was told by the Home Office that a manager may enter an individual’s bedroom without consent. Will the Minister investigate that company and find out what exactly is going on in the treatment of those vulnerable individuals?
Child Refugees in Europe — House of Commons, 2016-01-25
Topic: Immigration
Michael Joseph Patrick Kane (Labour, Centre-left): As a primary educator, my heart was broken on Thursday when I saw the conditions of the children in the Jungle camp in Calais. It would be the same for people no matter what side of the argument they are on. From a round table with Secours Catholique and the Caritas Social Action Network, we understand that 200 to 300 families with many children probably have leave to remain in the UK but do not know their legal rights. Will the Minister commit to putting a legal resource into that camp to help those families to avoid the traffickers, because they have the right to come here in the first place?
Child Refugees in Europe — House of Commons, 2016-01-25
Topic: Mixed Topics
Andrew Francis Slaughter (Labour, Centre-left): When will the Government decide to support Lord Dubs’s amendment? I ask because when I was in the Calais camp on 21 December, I met a former Afghan interpreter for UK forces who was trying to look after some of the unaccompanied children, including 15-year-old Masud. By the time I recounted that visit in Westminster Hall on 6 January, Masud was dead. Time is of the essence. Would not this Wednesday—Holocaust Memorial Day—be a suitable date for the Minister to make up his mind and let the children in?
Child Refugees in Europe — House of Commons, 2016-01-25
Topic: Mixed Topics
Diana Ruth Johnson (Labour, Centre-left): Putting victims of exploitation and trafficking first was at heart of the Modern Slavery Act 2015. In this case, it is clear that unaccompanied children are among the most vulnerable victims of exploitation and trafficking. Will the Minister say exactly what is happening to identify very vulnerable children who have been trafficked and who are at risk of exploitation, and to take a decision to get them to this country?
Child Refugees in Europe — House of Commons, 2016-01-25
Topic: Other
Alison McGovern (Labour, Centre-left): Can I ask the Minister not to listen to the hon. Member for Gainsborough (Sir Edward Leigh), with his separation of rationality and emotion on this issue? My right hon. Friend the Member for Normanton, Pontefract and Castleford (Yvette Cooper) laid out the facts and we are merely responding to them—the hon. Gentleman has no monopoly on rationality here. Does the Minister recall—[Interruption.]
Child Refugees in Europe — House of Commons, 2016-01-25
Topic: Immigration
Alison McGovern (Labour, Centre-left): Thank you, Mr Speaker. I will not detain the House by repeating my entreaties on rationality, but we are talking about the facts. It is a fact that two years ago on 29 January 2014 the Government refused our calls to join the UNHCR scheme for the settlement of refugees, and it took a brave media to change their mind. I simply say to the Minister, "Don’t leave it too long again. Open our doors now."
Childcare Bill [Lords] — House of Commons, 2016-01-25
Topic: Other
Jenny Chapman (Labour, Centre-left): I am, of course, grateful to the Minister for his intervention, but I might just suggest that he will get the opportunity to make his own speech when I have finished, and he might want to answer some of my questions then. I will move on—
Childcare Bill [Lords] — House of Commons, 2016-01-25
Topic: Mixed Topics
Alexander Cunningham (Labour, Centre-left): I am grateful to my constituency near-neighbour for giving way. I was pleased to serve on the Bill Committee and I have never seen a Minister intervene so often during others’ speeches with reassurances such as "the Prime Minister’s promise will be fulfilled," or "There will be sufficient quality places," and all manner of other such statements. Would not the Minister be seen to be really reassuring us if he accepted new clause 1 and the scrutiny put down in law?
Childcare Bill [Lords] — House of Commons, 2016-01-25
Topic: Civil Rights
Michael Joseph Patrick Kane (Labour, Centre-left): My hon. Friend is making an excellent speech. As the equality gap widens in Tory Britain in 2016, is not the most important decision for a young person to choose their parents in the womb if they want to get on in life?
Childcare Bill [Lords] — House of Commons, 2016-01-25
Topic: Other
Jenny Chapman (Labour, Centre-left): What the Minister says is correct—that is his intention—but does he accept that in new clause 1 our intention is simply to hold him to that and to assess the success of the Bill in delivering that intention?