argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
EU Parliament Elections: Denial of Votes — House of Commons, 2019-06-04
Topic: Civil Rights
Angela Eagle (Labour, Centre-left): I think the Minister has misunderstood his job. He seems to think it is about disenfranchising people who are going to vote the wrong way. After the 2014 European elections, the Electoral Commission warned that the current practice of requiring citizens to complete an additional form needed to be more streamlined, moving to a near automatic system of inclusion as is the case in most other European countries, yet the Minister and his Department did precisely nothing about it. [Interruption.] Perhaps he could get the smirk off his face. We are actually talking about democratic involvement; even though the Minister does not seem to rate it, Labour Members think that it is an important principle.
EU Parliament Elections: Denial of Votes — House of Commons, 2019-06-04
Topic: Civil Rights
Lloyd Russell-Moyle (Labour, Centre-left): I wrote to every single one of my EU national constituents at my own personal cost to inform them of this voter suppression. I wonder whether the Minister will repay me the cost of the postage, and whether he will also reflect on article 9(4) of the directive he cites, which says that Community voters "shall remain" on the register until they are removed. Getting them all to re-sign the form was therefore a breach of Community rules, and he should learn his law better.
EU Parliament Elections: Denial of Votes — House of Commons, 2019-06-04
Topic: Civil Rights
Victoria Jane Foxcroft (Labour, Centre-left): Paloma Luna has lived in my constituency since 1992, and she has voted in every single local and European election until this year. Because of the impossible timetable set by the Government for our electoral services, Paloma never received the UC1 form. Electoral services normally have three months for such things, and this time they had three weeks. What does the Minister have to say to all of those who were denied their fundamental, basic human right to vote? And please do remember that these are human beings.
EU Parliament Elections: Denial of Votes — House of Commons, 2019-06-04
Topic: Mixed Topics
Martin David Whitfield (Labour, Centre-left): It is disappointing that some areas seemed to accept UC1s on the day of the election, but not those in Scotland, which said they were instructed to do that. The Minister has said that he took "all legal steps", so can he confirm the percentage of UC1 forms that were forwarded to countries overseas between 7 May and the election?
EU Parliament Elections: Denial of Votes — House of Commons, 2019-06-04
Topic: Civil Rights
Joanna Meriel Stevens (Labour, Centre-left): A number of my EU-national constituents were prevented from voting on 23 May, and they are exceptionally angry about it. The issues on polling day were a direct and deliberate result of the failure by the Government—the coalition Government and then the Conservative Government—to address the concerns raised by the Electoral Commission after the 2014 elections. At the very least, my constituents are owed an apology. Are they going to get one?
EU Parliament Elections: Denial of Votes — House of Commons, 2019-06-04
Topic: Civil Rights
Gerard Killen (Labour, Centre-left): Is the Minister seriously trying to say that nothing went wrong here, and that is why he will not apologise? I, too, have constituents who sent all the forms off in time and who went on the day with an extra form just in case, and they were denied the right to vote. They were disenfranchised by this Government. Surely they are owed an apology. Will the Minister take that opportunity now?
EU Parliament Elections: Denial of Votes — House of Commons, 2019-06-04
Topic: Civil Rights
Paul Christopher Blomfield (Labour, Centre-left): The empty Government Benches will send a powerful message to EU nationals across the country. Many of them in my constituency contacted me to say that they had registered to vote online, after it became clear on 11 April that the elections would be taking place; they told me that the system did not alert them to the need to complete a UC1 form, nor was it available online. Does the Minister accept that the Cabinet Office’s failure to ensure that proper processes were in place denied them their vote?
EU Parliament Elections: Denial of Votes — House of Commons, 2019-06-04
Topic: Civil Rights
Katherine Anne Green (Labour, Centre-left): My constituent, a Spanish national, had a similar experience: he believed he had returned his UC1 form digitally, but the local authority said it could find no trace of it, and advising him on 3 May on a website that he should have downloaded it, printed it out and posted it back is not reasonable when he had an expectation that his digital form was acceptable. Is it not time there was a proper Government-sponsored inquiry into every stage of the process, so that we can understand exactly what went wrong with both the system and the information available to voters?
EU Parliament Elections: Denial of Votes — House of Commons, 2019-06-04
Topic: Immigration
Ruth Margaret Cadbury (Labour, Centre-left): The Minister says the legislation is in place, but the processes clearly are not, despite the recommendations from the 2014 investigation, which have not been implemented. Many of my constituents have contacted me to say they were refused the vote on election day, despite their having voted in London and council elections, and even the 2014 European parliamentary elections. Does the Minister not acknowledge that this debacle only adds to the anger and sense of exclusion felt by so many of the 3 million EU citizens in this country since the 2016 referendum? Is it not worried that it will exacerbate the rate at which EU citizens leave our country and so no longer contribute to our society?
EU Parliament Elections: Denial of Votes — House of Commons, 2019-06-04
Topic: Civil Rights
Daniel Stephen Zeichner (Labour, Centre-left): It really does seem that sorry is the hardest word. My constituents have faced all the problems outlined by my hon. Friends, including the situation where the form has been properly filled in but they are still denied the vote—and, of course, denied their vote in their home country, so they are doubly disenfranchised. At the end of these exchanges, could the Minister show some grace on behalf of the Government and apologise not to Opposition Members, but to the people who have been disenfranchised?
EU Parliament Elections: Denial of Votes — House of Commons, 2019-06-04
Topic: Civil Rights
Luke Pollard (Labour, Centre-left): "This feels like one big scam"—that is what one citizen I represent told me about his experience of this process. I say to my fellow Devon MP that I think he has got this one wrong. When the Electoral Commission publishes its report, will he now commit to publishing it and bringing it back to this House with a statement, so that he can say sorry, from the Dispatch Box, to all the EU citizens who have been denied a vote, and set out how it will be corrected in future?
Illegal Seaborne Migration — House of Commons, 2019-06-04
Topic: Immigration
Yvette Cooper (Labour, Centre-left): I welcome what I think the Minister was saying about wanting to continue the resettlement programmes. The Home Office is right to want to prevent dangerous journeys across the channel, where lives can be at risk. The Home Office made a big announcement about the deployment of HMS Mersey and HMS Enterprise to the channel, but can the Minister confirm that neither of those vessels was involved in leading any interceptions while they were deployed? Is it correct that the deployment cost the Home Office nearly £1 million? Does she agree that it is important that these measures should be evidence-based and not simply about being able to make big announcements?
Illegal Seaborne Migration — House of Commons, 2019-06-04
Topic: Immigration
Katherine Anne Green (Labour, Centre-left): Can the Minister categorically confirm that no one who could make a claim for asylum is being sent back to France under the so-called gentleman’s agreement that allows for migrants to be returned within a 24-hour period?
Illegal Seaborne Migration — House of Commons, 2019-06-04
Topic: Immigration
Thangam Elizabeth Rachel Debbonaire (Labour, Centre-left): I am grateful to the Minister for her emphasis on safety and preventing harm and loss of life and to hear that an announcement is imminent about the expansion, or something, of resettlement. However, returning to the question from my hon. Friend the Member for Stretford and Urmston (Kate Green), although the Minister said that people are being treated exactly the same, that is not quite the full answer that I and, I think, my hon. Friend were hoping for, so I will give her one more chance: is she absolutely sure that everyone who was entitled to apply for asylum was offered that chance?
Illegal Seaborne Migration — House of Commons, 2019-06-04
Topic: Immigration
Lloyd Russell-Moyle (Labour, Centre-left): Does the Minister agree that the development of a hostile environment in Britain pushes people towards criminals, meaning that they cannot get access to services here? The same is true across the channel in France. If we do not provide people with legal means of coming here through managed migration, that pushes them towards criminals. We need to open up better routes for people, so that they are not forced into the hands of criminals.
Post-18 Education and Funding — House of Commons, 2019-06-04
Topic: Mixed Topics
Thangam Elizabeth Rachel Debbonaire (Labour, Centre-left): Does the Secretary of State not agree with me that ensuring that free or low-cost high-quality childcare was available on demand for parents who need it to go to college or university would be transformative for women’s lives? If he does agree, will he commit to properly fund early years education and high-quality childcare for children of all ages, and to do so properly on the supply side, so that women can get training or qualifications and develop their potential and we can make progress in closing the gender earnings gap?
Wild Animals in Circuses (No. 2) Bill — House of Commons, 2019-06-04
Topic: Mixed Topics
Alexander David Sobel (Labour, Centre-left): I would like some reassurance from the Minister about a circus that operates in my constituency—Circus Mondao—which has a zebra and two camels. I have been campaigning for it to cease the use of these, and I ask that the Bill cover that so that I can happily go to Circus Mondao in the knowledge that, because of this Act, it is not using wild animals.
Wild Animals in Circuses (No. 2) Bill — House of Commons, 2019-06-04
Topic: Other
Rosalie Winterton (Labour, Centre-left): Consideration completed. As the Bill has not been amended since its introduction, Standing Order No. 83L does not apply and I do not need to suspend the House to reconsider the Bill I remind the House that on Second Reading the Speaker certified that clauses 1 and 2 and the schedule relate exclusively to England on matters within devolved legislative competence. Under Standing Order No. 83M, a consent motion is therefore required for the Bill to proceed. Copies of the motion are being made available in the Vote Office and on the parliamentary website, and have been made available to Members in the Chamber Does the Minister intend to move the consent motion?
Walsall Arboretum: park organisation — House of Commons, 2019-06-04
Topic: Public Lands
Valerie Carol Marian Vaz (Labour, Centre-left): The petition is from residents of the United Kingdom. The petitioners are concerned that Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council’s decision to restructure the management of Walsall arboretum in Walsall South was made without consultation with the public. The petitioners say that the changes leave the arboretum with no onsite management and no dedicated management team. The petitioners say that these changes return the management of the arboretum to the situation it was in prior to investment by the Heritage Lottery fund. The petitioners note that there is a related petition on this matter started by my constituent, Fiona Macmillan, on change.org with 1,395 signatures The petition states: To the House of Commons The Petition of Residents of the United Kingdom Declares that Walsall MBC's decision to restructure the management of Walsall Arboretum in Walsall South constituency was made with no consultation with the public; further that the changes leave the Arboretum with no onsite management and no dedicated management team; further that these changes return the management of the Arboretum to the situation it was in prior to investment by the Heritage Lottery; and further notes a related petition on this matter on change.org with over 1200 signatures The petitioners therefore request the House of Commons to urge Walsall MBC to consult the public about the changes and restore the posts of Arboretum Manager and Events Co-ordinator dedicated to ensuring the activities, events, care and maintenance of the Arboretum continue [P002457]
Leaving the EU: Manufacturing — House of Commons, 2019-06-26
Topic: Mixed Topics
Christina Elizabeth Rees (Labour, Centre-left): The last thing I would do is undermine Wales. I am proud of my country and I am proud to have represented Wales many times. When you pull on that red jersey, Mr Speaker, there is nothing like it I will try again: given the Secretary of State’s apparent support for a no-deal Brexit as a price worth paying to keep his own job, what can he possibly say to people in Wales who stand to lose their manufacturing jobs as a result of his Government’s catastrophic mishandling of the Brexit negotiations?
Industrial Strategy — House of Commons, 2019-06-26
Topic: Mixed Topics
Questions: What recent discussions he has had with (a) Cabinet colleagues and (b) the Welsh Government on the effect of the industrial strategy on the Welsh economy.; What recent discussions he has had with (a) Cabinet colleagues and (b) the Welsh Government on the effect of the industrial strategy on the Welsh economy.
James Ian Mearns (Labour, Centre-left): In the light of the very concerning news about the number of jobs that could be lost at the Ford engine plant in Bridgend, and reports of the impact that similar announcements by Nissan in my region and Honda will have on the supply chain companies in Wales, what assessment has the Minister made of the impact that Brexit is already having on the automotive sector in Wales? What discussions has he had with the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy to provide support to the sector in Wales via the industrial strategy?
Infrastructure Resilience — House of Commons, 2019-06-26
Topic: Mixed Topics
Wayne David (Labour, Centre-left): The European regional development fund has made a huge contribution to the development of infrastructure in Wales. Will the Minister give a commitment that resources from the new shared prosperity fund will be allocated on the basis of need and not through competition?
Points of Order — House of Commons, 2019-06-26
Topic: Other
Geraint Richard Davies (Labour, Centre-left): On a point of order, Mr Speaker. As you know, people travel far and wide to come to Prime Minister’s questions. Today the imam from the university mosque, Sheikh Mohsen, and his colleague, Mahaboob Basha, are here. Given that people have to travel so far and that the public and private travel networks are not that great, might you consider in the future the possibility of delaying the start time of PMQs to enable more people to travel from further afield to view the proceedings?
Immigration — House of Commons, 2019-06-26
Topic: Immigration
Alexander David Sobel (Labour, Centre-left): Many people come to see me in my surgeries about family visit visas. The hostile environment is extending to such a degree that people cannot bring their family members over for a visit, because there is a presumption that they will stay once they are here. The Home Office is so bogged down in its attitude towards anybody who wants to come to the UK that we are not able to make progress. Should there not be wholescale reform of the system?
Immigration — House of Commons, 2019-06-26
Topic: Immigration
Thangam Elizabeth Rachel Debbonaire (Labour, Centre-left): The hon. Gentleman is making an excellent series of points, particularly now that he has come on to the asylum system, which is a subject close to my heart. Does he agree that if we want to show the world that we are truly an outward-facing, internationalist country—as I believe everyone in this House would agree we are; it is part of our values—then the asylum system is in urgent need of reform to make sure that refugees are truly welcome, and to live up to the findings of the Home Office’s own recently published report on refugee integration? There is a lot we could do right now. Even in the next three weeks, we could make it possible for asylum seekers to work after six months.
Immigration — House of Commons, 2019-06-26
Topic: Immigration
Thangam Elizabeth Rachel Debbonaire (Labour, Centre-left): Does the hon. Gentleman agree that the work done by Hope not Hate and British Future establishes that the British people are behind what he is arguing for? Most people actually value immigration; they just want a system that is fair, accountable and transparent. That is what I believe all of us here would want.
Immigration — House of Commons, 2019-06-26
Topic: Mixed Topics
Paul John Sweeney (Labour, Centre-left): I thank the Minister for giving way. She referred to evidence-based policy making. Does she recognise that the Fresh Talent initiative introduced by a previous First Minister of Scotland, Lord McConnell, which he credits as his single most effective achievement in office, contributed to reversing Scotland’s historic population decline?
Immigration — House of Commons, 2019-06-26
Topic: Immigration
Thangam Elizabeth Rachel Debbonaire (Labour, Centre-left): The Minister is generous to give way. She mentioned high-skilled migration. Has there been reflection in her Department, and perhaps in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Department for International Development, about the impact on other countries of us focusing on taking their high-skilled migrants? I am not saying that there is an easy answer—I do not think there is—but I wonder whether that has been a consideration across Departments.
Immigration — House of Commons, 2019-06-26
Topic: Immigration
Mohammed Afzal Khan (Labour, Centre-left): I have already said that our immigration system will be flexible and based on the needs of our economy, including Scotland’s Whoever is Prime Minister must make settled status a declaratory system, scrap the £30,000 salary threshold and uphold our humanitarian obligations to refugees. This country has a great amount to offer and to gain from migration, and that should be celebrated.
Immigration — House of Commons, 2019-06-26
Topic: Immigration
Imran Hussain (Labour, Centre-left): The hon. Lady makes a strong case on income thresholds. Does she agree that the minimum income rule, which continues to divide families in a spouse visa situation, is equally disgraceful? Many people in my constituency earn nowhere near £18,600. It is yet another example of the hostile environment created by the Government.
Immigration — House of Commons, 2019-06-26
Topic: Immigration
Matthew Raymond Western (Labour, Centre-left): The hon. Lady is making some important points. I want to expand on her point about visitor visas, on which she seems to suffer the same sorts of issues as I do. A great many of my constituents are simply asking that, say, their octogenarian parents are able to visit them, but they are being denied that possibility. Even though promises and assurances have been given, they are being denied access to see their grandchildren.
Immigration — House of Commons, 2019-06-26
Topic: Immigration
Imran Hussain (Labour, Centre-left): The hon. Lady is making a powerful case, particularly on visitor visas and the Home Office’s poor decision making. I dealt with a case in which there was a discrepancy of one penny between the P60 and other evidence, so the application was refused and the person could not attend an important family wedding. Again, that illustrates the hostile environment created by this Government through the back door.
Immigration — House of Commons, 2019-06-26
Topic: Other
Rosalie Winterton (Labour, Centre-left): Order. Some hon. Members have not been in for the debate, and I do hope they are not going to disrupt the Minister when she is trying to reply to those who have been in for the debate.
Immigration — House of Commons, 2019-06-26
Topic: Other
Rosalie Winterton (Labour, Centre-left): I thank the hon. Gentleman for that point of order. As I suspect he knows—he hinted that he might—the former Leader of the House made a statement on what could be expected. The Government will make a response within, I think, approximately two months. I hope that is clear.
Armed Forces Day — House of Commons, 2019-06-26
Topic: Mixed Topics
James Dolan Cunningham (Labour, Centre-left): I apologise to the Minister for coming in late. The covenant has now been going for about 10 years. What percentage of its objectives have been realised in areas such as mental health, housing and employment? It has been going for a very long time and I would like to know how far we have come. Has he had any discussions with the British Legion about this?
Armed Forces Day — House of Commons, 2019-06-26
Topic: Mixed Topics
Nia Rhiannon Griffith (Labour, Centre-left): My hon. Friend makes a good point. None of us wants to see any of our serving forces and their families living in substandard accommodation. There are certainly issues to be addressed in respect of Amey and forces housing In respect of the future accommodation model, we do not want personnel to be pushed into the private rented sector without any choice. Indeed, a recent Army Families Federation survey demonstrated that, if the availability of the accommodation currently on offer was reduced and a rental allowance offered instead, only 22% of respondents would definitely remain in the Army. The insecurity, variable quality and limited availability of the private rented sector is a concern, and it is not clear how the additional costs of private sector rents would be met The armed forces community encompasses not only current and former personnel but their families, who provide a crucial support network to service members and who experience the demands of forces life at first hand. The nature of service life means that many forces families have to move house repeatedly, including to postings abroad. One difficulty that some service families face is finding new schools for their children, especially if they resettle outside the admissions cycle A recent Children’s Commissioner for England report highlights how service children are sometimes not placed in the most appropriate school with siblings or other forces children from the same unit, causing further and unnecessary distress. It can help if local authorities have better awareness of the needs of service children. For example, Rhondda Cynon Taf Council has a dedicated education officer who works closely with the families of serving personnel, and with schools, to ensure that the children of service members are supported in their education. The fragmentation of education in England, with admissions in the hands of academies or academy trusts, makes such work more difficult.
Armed Forces Day — House of Commons, 2019-06-26
Topic: Mixed Topics
Mathew Richard Allen Rodda (Labour, Centre-left): I wish briefly to thank a number of local organisations in my constituency for what they have done. Reading Borough Council has prioritised veterans in its housing register, in an area of high housing need. That is an important step. The town council in Woodley has put together a wonderful commemoration of the sacrifice in world war one, highlighting many local men who failed to return from Flanders. Many local voluntary and veterans’ organisations have made contributions. I would like to thank them for their support for and recognition of the wonderful service that has taken place.