argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Covid-19: Faith Groups — House of Commons, 2021-02-11
Topic: International Affairs
Edmund Francis Hughes (Conservative, Centre-right): Indeed. That visit was made thanks to the Conservative Friends of Israel and it was an opportunity to learn more about that country, the Jewish people and so on. I am not at all surprised by the excellent examples that my hon. Friend gave of their work in this country during the pandemic.
Great Britain-Northern Ireland Pet Travel — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): The Northern Ireland protocol under the European Union withdrawal agreement applies the EU pet travel regulations for pet movements from Great Britain to Northern Ireland. Great Britain has currently been listed by the EU in part 2 of the regulations, which requires some documentation. However, Great Britain and Ireland have a similarly very high health status, and we are discussing possible bilateral provisions with Ireland. In the meantime, the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs is taking a pragmatic approach in this initial period.
Great Britain-Northern Ireland Pet Travel — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): The primary purpose of the pet travel regulations is to control the spread of rabies, and both Ireland and Great Britain have very similar and very high health status on rabies, having not had it in dogs previously. We therefore think that there should be easement on the provision; we have argued with the Commission that we should be listed in part 1, but we are continuing to make those bilateral negotiations with Ireland a priority.
Distant Fleet Fishing — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): Last Thursday, the UK Government published the determination of fishing opportunities for British fishing boats covering the period to 31 March this year. Licences have been issued for 2,750 tonnes of cod in the waters around Svalbard, which result from arrangements between the UK and Norway. The UK’s first annual bilateral negotiations with Norway will also be relevant to distant waters fishing, in particular with regard to Arctic cod.
Distant Fleet Fishing — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): It is not unusual for the annual fishing negotiations to go into January. This year, there has obviously been the very special circumstance that the withdrawal agreement came late, but in 2014 access was suspended while negotiations with Norway continued through January. We would anticipate that these negotiations would conclude within the next couple of weeks, and then access for Arctic cod, should that be agreed, could be resumed.
Food Imports and Exports — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Foreign Trade
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): We have engaged extensively with industry to support trader readiness for new requirements for exporting to the EU. For those importing to the UK, we established a phased approach to border controls for the first period of 2021. We have supported exporters as they familiarise themselves with new processes around export health certificates and customs declarations, and we have liaised closely with EU states, such as France, that are also getting used to new processes at the border. Finally, we have worked closely with ministerial colleagues in the Department for Transport to ensure the rapid deployment of the covid-19 testing measures required by France.
Food Imports and Exports — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Foreign Trade
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): The sector that has had greatest difficulty in these first few weeks has been the fishing sector, principally because it is a very time-critical, perishable product, but there are also some smaller businesses selling smaller consignments in mixed, grouped loads. Overall, the system is working well. We are issuing around 150 export health certificates per day. The volume of lorries through the short straits is back up to around 6,000 to 7,000 per day—still some way short of normal levels, but nevertheless it continues to grow.
Food Imports and Exports — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): Yesterday, we announced that we would offer one-to-one support for individual enterprises in the fishing sector that are struggling to get used to the new paperwork; that could be from HMRC or the Animal and Plant Health Agency. In addition, we work very closely with customs officials and Border Force officials in France to help improve the understanding at that level. We also announced a £23 million fund yesterday to help those fishing businesses that have struggled in these initial weeks.
Food Imports and Exports — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Foreign Trade
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Gentleman is wrong about that. Actually, goods are flowing, particularly lamb, which is our principal meat export. Dairy goods are also flowing. Yes, there are occasionally delays at the border, as border officials in France and the Netherlands get used to the new processes, but we are intervening in all such instances to help the businesses concerned.
Scottish Fishing Communities: EU Trade — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Foreign Trade
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): As I explained earlier, we have announced a £23 million fund to help exporters who struggled with the paperwork in the initial weeks. We have also been working daily with the fishing sector to tackle and iron out any particular issues it has encountered. Twice a week we hold long stakeholder calls with all businesses concerned. I have had personal conversations with organisations such as DFDS, which leads on distribution. We have given them all the support we can to help them iron out the teething issues they have been having.
Scottish Fishing Communities: EU Trade — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): With the support we have given industry to iron out some of the issues it has been having, the flow of goods is now continuing. DFDS in particular has been very successful at transporting salmon to the European Union. This week, it resumed groupage systems to take smaller consignments. We know there are between 30 to 50 lorries of fish making their way to Boulogne each and every day.
Agricultural Support — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Victoria Mary Boswell Prentis (Conservative, Centre-right): The Government made a manifesto commitment to maintain the current annual budget to farmers. In England, we will be offering both transitional and productivity support from this year. Now we have left the EU, Wales, too, can shape its own agricultural policies.
Agricultural Support — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Virginia Ann Crosbie (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank the Minister for her answer. This week is Farmers’ Union Wales Farmhouse Breakfast Week. This morning my family tucked into a hearty breakfast of local produce from the butchers at Anglesey Fine Foods in Valley. Farmers in my constituency, such as Gerald Thomas and Brian Bown, grow and rear some of the finest foods in the UK. What discussions has the Minister had with the Welsh Government to ensure they receive the same levels of support as English farmers now that they have left the EU? Does she also agree with me that Welsh farm sausage is the finest addition to any good breakfast?
Agricultural Support — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Victoria Mary Boswell Prentis (Conservative, Centre-right): Well, a Welsh sausage is hard to beat, and I congratulate the Farmers’ Union of Wales on its excellent farmhouse breakfast campaign and my hon. Friend on sourcing and enjoying local produce with her family this morning. DEFRA works closely with the Welsh Government, and we have a shared commitment to promoting Welsh food.
Food Producers: Content Restrictions — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Greg Smith (Conservative, Centre-right): The inclusion of breakfast cereals in the proposals for restricting the promotion of these products is causing real concern to cereal growers in my constituency, such as Morris of Hoggeston, and the wider breakfast cereal industry. particularly as there is no allowance for the naturally occurring sugars and fats from the dried fruits and nuts often put with cereals such as granola, porridge and muesli. Will my right hon. Friend advise what assessment has been made of the impact on UK farmers of these proposals and work with colleagues, particularly in the Department of Health and Social Care, to see more common sense applied to breakfast cereals?
Tree Planting — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Environment
Rebecca Faye Clark (Pow) (Conservative, Centre-right): We committed in our manifesto to increasing planting across the UK to 30,000 hectares, and we are working with the devolved Administrations to deliver that. We announced a £640 million nature for climate fund, a lot of which will contribute towards the tree planting, together with our green recovery challenge fund, and the skills required to plant these trees and look after them will all be part and parcel of this. We will be publishing our tree strategy with all the details later in the spring.
Air Pollution: Brownfield Redevelopment — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Environment
Rebecca Faye Clark (Pow) (Conservative, Centre-right): The Secretary of State regularly meets Cabinet colleagues to discuss a range of issues, including air quality and planning issues. Air quality is a key consideration of local authority planning decisions, and there are strong protections in place to safeguard people from unacceptable risks from air pollution where development is proposed, and this is detailed in national planning policy.
Air Pollution: Brownfield Redevelopment — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Environment
Rebecca Faye Clark (Pow) (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank the hon. Gentleman for his question. The redevelopment of the former gasworks site at Southall is a matter for the local authority and the Mayor of London, as I am sure he is well aware. Local authorities are required to review and assess local air quality and decide what monitoring is necessary in line with statutory duties. This Government are tackling air quality and taking it extremely seriously with their £3.8 billion project. If the hon. Gentleman wants to contact me with any details about this issue, I am happy to speak to him but I am not able to get involved in any way in particular planning issues.
Animal Welfare — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Victoria Mary Boswell Prentis (Conservative, Centre-right): The Government are committed to the animal welfare agenda. Currently, we are working on proposals to ban live exports for slaughter or fattening, banning primates as pets and introducing compulsory microchipping for cats. We will increase sentences for animal cruelty, enhance the welfare standards of farmed animals and bring forward proposals relating to animal sentience.
Animal Welfare — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Luke Morgan Evans (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank the Minister for her answer, and I am grateful for all she is doing, but both the demand for puppies in the UK and their price have skyrocketed over lockdown. I declare an interest: I bought two of the same breed several months apart and saw a doubling in the price. I have been speaking to reputable breeders, and they are choosing not to breed their dogs because of concerns about welfare. What are the Government doing to ensure puppy welfare, clamp down on puppy farms and stop puppy profiteering?
Animal Welfare — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Victoria Mary Boswell Prentis (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend raises an important question, which I know he has campaigned on before. Regulations in England require anyone in the business of breeding and selling dogs to be licensed. Last year, we banned commercial third-party sales of puppies and kittens, and also launched our national Petfished campaign to educate the public on how to source pets responsibly.
Puppy Trafficking — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Victoria Mary Boswell Prentis (Conservative, Centre-right): DEFRA takes the trade in puppy smuggling seriously. We operate a rigorous checking regime, and the Animal and Plant Health Agency works collaboratively to share intelligence, disrupt illegal imports and seize animals where that is necessary. The end of the transition period has created new opportunities for cracking down on puppy smuggling, and we are considering a range of options to help with this.
Puppy Trafficking — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Victoria Mary Boswell Prentis (Conservative, Centre-right): The Government are actively considering a range of opportunities to crack down on this abhorrent trade, as the hon. Gentleman says. We are listening to the views of a large number of stakeholders, including the Dogs Trust and the Select Committee on Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which have made useful comments in this space. I look forward to working with him and Members from across this House to take these proposals forward Topical Questions
Puppy Trafficking — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Energy
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): We have been working closely with both the Secretary of State for Wales and the Welsh Government on this challenge, which we all take seriously. I know that discussions have taken place in the past with the national Coal Authority on this matter as well, and we will continue to work closely with the Welsh Government on it.
Puppy Trafficking — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Environment
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): We are working on the air quality targets that will form part of our targets under the Environment Bill. We are looking at population exposure, as well as an absolute concentration target, and we are working with experts to assess what that concentration target should be.
Puppy Trafficking — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): We have not changed our regulations on neonicotinoids, if that is what the hon. Gentleman is referring to. In common with 10 other EU countries, we have granted an emergency authorisation, which is an integral part of the precautionary principle. We have done so for a non-flowering crop, and we have also made it clear that flowering crops cannot be grown there for at least three years.
Puppy Trafficking — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): I remember very well that visit to my hon. Friend’s constituency. It is always good to see such ambitious plans come into effect and start to take shape. I would be delighted to visit her constituency again, and to outline some of our plans to ensure better fishing opportunities for our inshore fleet.
Puppy Trafficking — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): Of course they should, because in the white fish sector and the quota sector we have secured an uplift in quota that is front-loaded; the uplift is 15% next year. We will also have full regulatory autonomy on technical conservation measures, which gives us the ability to support the shellfish sector far better than we were able to in the European Union.
Persecution of Christians: Nigeria — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: International Affairs
Andrew Edmund Armstrong Selous (Conservative, Centre-right): The Archbishop of Canterbury, who knows Nigeria well, is monitoring the recent violence and the kidnapping of 300 schoolboys. He and I have met the family of Leah Sharibu, who was kidnapped by Boko Haram in 2018, and who is still a prisoner, as she refuses to renounce Jesus. Clergy who have spoken out have been threatened by prominent civil society organisations, and the Church continues to stay closely involved.
Lockdown: Church Attendance — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Education
Daniel Rayne Kruger (Conservative, Centre-right): It is very encouraging to hear that. It is a matter of deep regret that churches were closed during the lockdowns last year. I very much appreciate that they are allowed to conduct services this time. Obviously we hope that we will all be out of restrictions soon, but there is always a danger of further restrictions. We worry a lot about the provision of online teaching in schools. Does my hon. Friend agree that the delivery of online live church services is enormously important, and—we must be frank—that this is not a skill that might come naturally to many vicars? Does he agree that the Church of England should make an absolute priority the provision of online resources, and the training of vicars and church teams to deliver them?
Persecution of Christians — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: International Affairs
Andrew Edmund Armstrong Selous (Conservative, Centre-right): As part of the new Foreign Office project, the Church and the other consortium members will be equipping parliamentarians and religious leaders with the technical assistance and other expertise they need to propose solutions in their own countries to these terrible human rights abuses.
Landholdings — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Environment
Andrew Edmund Armstrong Selous (Conservative, Centre-right): The Church Commissioners are undertaking a natural capital assessment to provide a baseline for our carbon outputs and to understand our ecosystem services. This will provide a plan to lower carbon outputs and inform our natural capital strategy. Where possible, our tenancies have clauses relating to good husbandry and the non-removal of topsoil, and with longer-term tenancies, soil analyses are carried out at the beginning and the end of leases to ensure that soil health is maintained to a good standard.
Landholdings — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Christopher Lionel John Loder (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank my hon. Friend for his answer. The Church Commissioners own an estate of about 105,000 acres. What is the Church doing to help its tenant farmers to achieve sustainable farming, especially in the light of the current pressure that farmers face during coronavirus?
Landholdings — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Andrew Edmund Armstrong Selous (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank my hon. Friend for his interest in this important area. Over 60% of our agricultural land is let on secure agricultural tenancies and the remainder on more modern sorts of farm business tenancies. When new tenancies are granted, we encourage sustainable farming practices through our tenancy precedents. We will be reviewing this further in the light of our natural capital assessment results. We want to help our tenants to achieve both sustainable and profitable outcomes.
Landholdings — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Jerome Patrick Burke Mayhew (Conservative, Centre-right): The Church Commissioners’ ownership of a large amount of land—over 100,000 acres—gives us an opportunity to lead development of conservation agricultural farming techniques, improving soil health, reducing carbon inputs, and developing the evidence base on carbon sequestration. Does my hon. Friend agree that practitioners should approach management of their farming assets in the same way as they do with their other ethical investments?
Landholdings — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Andrew Edmund Armstrong Selous (Conservative, Centre-right): As a leading global ethical investor, we regularly engage with all the businesses in which we are invested to improve best practice. While farming practices and management decisions are mainly taken by our agricultural tenants, we have some who do practice zero tillage, and we strongly encourage sustainable farming practices when new tenancies are granted.
Covid-19: Landholdings — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Government Operations
Andrew Edmund Armstrong Selous (Conservative, Centre-right): The Commissioners’ property assets are independently valued by third parties on an annual basis. The audited financial results for 2020 will be available later in the year and laid before Parliament once an annual general meeting is able to take place.
Covid-19: Landholdings — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Environment
Mark Simon Eastwood (Conservative, Centre-right): The recently appointed Archbishop of York has spoken in the past about the importance of caring for green spaces. In his enthronement sermon, he declared that "we are at risk of separating ourselves from the planet itself, so obsessed have we become with the dangerous suppositions of our own importance and dominion." Can my hon. Friend encourage the archbishop to act on his words and impress upon the Church Commissioner landowners the need to have a rethink of their plan for the unjustifiable destruction of unspoilt countryside and farmland at Chidswell in Dewsbury?
Covid-19: Persecution of Christians — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: International Affairs
Henry Edward Millar Smith (Conservative, Centre-right): What discussions has the Church of England had with the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office to ensure that covid-19 international assistance aid reaches all in need and is not abused by discrimination against Christians, which has appallingly occurred in some countries?
Covid-19: Persecution of Christians — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: International Affairs
Andrew Edmund Armstrong Selous (Conservative, Centre-right): Last year, officials from the Church had regular meetings with the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office—both Ministers and staff—where concerns were raised that covid-19 was being politicised and that minority communities were indeed being discriminated against. Bishops regularly raise this issue in the other place as well, and I can assure my hon. Friend that the Church will continue to engage with the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office as the need arises.
Defence Equipment Plan: NAO Report — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Government Operations
Richard Michael Bacon (Conservative, Centre-right): I congratulate my hon. Friend on his assiduous following of this issue. He asked me about this issue in September last year, after the National Audit Office report on Carrier Strike. We now have the new report, "The Equipment Plan 2020-2030", published on 12 January, and I am pleased to tell him that the Public Accounts Committee will be taking evidence on that report on 4 February. I would also be happy to draw his interest in this matter to the attention of the Chair of the PAC, the hon. Member for Hackney South and Shoreditch (Meg Hillier).
Lockdown: Support for Schools — House of Commons, 2021-01-21
Topic: Education
Questions: To ask the hon. Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, what support the Church of England is providing to schools during the January 2021 covid-19 lockdown.
Andrew Edmund Armstrong Selous (Conservative, Centre-right): Diocesan education teams and local churches have focused on supporting the wellbeing of students and staff through the ongoing provision of collective worship, by providing and distributing food for disadvantaged families and, in many cases, by renovating and distributing technology to enable online learning to supplement the Government’s provision.