argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2021-02-02
Topic: Health
Robert Henry Halfon (Conservative, Centre-right): I pay tribute to my right hon. Friend and to the vaccines Minister, my hon. Friend Member for Stratford-on-Avon (Nadhim Zahawi), for the work they have done on vaccines. Will my right hon. Friend thank Essex Council, NHS staff and volunteers in Harlow who have, so far, vaccinated many thousands of residents Public Health England has said that adults over 18 with learning disabilities are at greater risk of dying than most people aged 65 to 74. International studies show that if someone is learning disabled aged 55 to 64, death rates are comparable to those for people aged over 80. My right hon. Friend will have seen the parliamentary petition on this, signed by many thousands, so will he work with the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation to move the adult learning disabled high up the priority list for vaccinations?
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2021-02-02
Topic: Health
Matthew John David Hancock (Conservative, Centre-right): I pay tribute to all those working in Harlow, including at the Harlow mass vaccination site, and also to the GPs and the pharmacists who are working so hard to vaccinate people right across Harlow On the question of the JCVI ordering and the prioritisation for vaccination, as my right hon. Friend knows, I think the best approach is to take the clinical advice and to follow that clinical advice. The sorts of considerations that he raises are an important part of the JCVI deliberations. I know it has looked very closely at the subject he raises. What matters now that it has made and published its decision is that we drive through the vaccination programme to get through as many of those groups as possible, and I am very pleased to see the hundreds of thousands of new vaccinations that are taking place every day.
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2021-02-02
Topic: Health
Philip Thomas Hollobone (Conservative, Centre-right): Could I commend the Health Secretary for the difficult and brave but correct decisions he made early on in the pandemic in relation to vaccines, which have led today to Britain having a world-leading vaccine roll-out? Could I also draw his attention to NHS Northamptonshire, which, thanks to the very hard work of all the local staff and volunteers, has one of the very best vaccine roll-out programmes in the whole country?
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2021-02-02
Topic: Health
Matthew John David Hancock (Conservative, Centre-right): Yes, I have been watching the progress of those at NHS Northamptonshire, who are going great guns, and I know they are working incredibly hard. This does not happen by magic; it happens by hard graft, especially of the GPs and the pharmacists, and the support teams and the volunteers, who are doing such a great job in Northants I am very grateful for what my hon. Friend has said. We did take decisions at risk early, before we knew whether they were going to come off, and knowing that we would be criticised if it did not work out. However, that meant we could get those contracts signed ahead of many other places, and it means that we will be able to deliver vaccines for UK citizens and then, of course, play our part in ensuring that everybody across the world can have access to this life-saving vaccine, too.
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2021-02-02
Topic: Health
Matthew John David Hancock (Conservative, Centre-right): All countries that have attempted a zero-covid strategy have found that this virus transmits and gets round the boundaries that have been put in place. There were parts of this country that tried a strategy of zero, and in fact we were urged to do so in this House, but what matters is making sure that we get the tools that are going to be used permanently for us to get through this, and that we get them deployed as fast as possible. That means testing, with the hundreds of testing sites that are now available and, crucially, it means getting this vaccine rolled out. The hon. Member said the vaccine offers hope, and I think that is where we should all focus—on getting this vaccine rolled out as quickly as we possibly can.
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2021-02-02
Topic: Health
Robert Joseph Roberts (Conservative, Centre-right): The Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board in north Wales has had some difficulties over a number of years, and it was not surprising that there was a collective sharp intake of breath, and mutterings of "here we go again", when the vaccine got off to a bit of a faltering start in north Wales. My colleagues and I have been in constant contact with the health board, and are pleased to report that things are now back on track. It is making good progress, and is very confident of being able to hit the target of vaccinating the first four groups by the middle of February. Will my right hon. Friend join me in paying tribute to the staff of the health board, and to the legions of volunteers, the armed forces, and all those involved in that process who are doing such a fantastic job in north Wales?
Ebola: Sierra Leone — House of Commons, 2016-01-19
Topic: Health
Diane Julie Abbott (Labour, Centre-left): I am sure that the whole House will join me in paying tribute not just to the British health workers and military who went to help the people of west Africa in the last Ebola outbreak, but to all the local health workers who bore the brunt of the campaign against Ebola and the brunt of the deaths The Secretary of State will be aware that the International Development Committee report says that the Government were too reliant on the World Health Organisation, which eventually declared an emergency in August 2014, and should have listened to other groups, such as Médecins sans Frontières, which had been warning about Ebola months earlier. Does she agree with the Committee’s Chairman that "The international community relied on WHO to sound the alarm for an international emergency on the scale of Ebola. The organisation’s failure to respond quickly enough is now well documented" Does the Secretary of State agree that Ebola cannot be seen in isolation and that we have to look at the general issue of access to healthcare in the region and building a resilient health system?
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2021-02-02
Topic: Health
Matthew John David Hancock (Conservative, Centre-right): I take all that as a compliment. The £500 payment is incredibly important in supporting people on low incomes, as is the huge roll-out of test and trace, with more than 90% of contacts now identified and contacted by NHS Test and Trace, which is doing a magnificent job. Of course, the roll-out of the vaccine is going rapidly, and this weekend, one in 60 of all adults in the country got a jab, which is testament to that. We are always looking to improve and learn lessons wherever we can, but I am glad that things are making the progress they are.
Ebola: Sierra Leone — House of Commons, 2016-01-19
Topic: Health
Andrew John Gwynne (Labour, Centre-left): I very much support the Secretary of State’s efforts so far and I agree with her comments about the need for economic reconstruction in Sierra Leone. She will have heard the comments of the chief medical officer of Sierra Leone, who is reported as saying that in the case in Magburaka, the patient showed "no signs or symptoms that fitted the case definition of Ebola" Given that very disturbing fact, what are the wider public health implications for us in the United Kingdom, and what discussions has she had about this specific issue with Public Health England, the Department of Health and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office?
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2021-02-02
Topic: Health
Mark James Harper (Conservative, Centre-right): May I add my congratulations to those who have been rolling out the vaccine? I listened carefully to what my hon. Friend the Member for Kettering (Mr Hollobone) said, and I want to put on record my thanks to those in Gloucestershire, which, as of last Thursday, was the top performing part of the country. Hereford and Worcestershire next door was the second highest performing part, which kind of makes them the highest-performing roll-outs in the whole of the western world. I thank the Secretary of State for his help and that fantastic performance I want to take the Secretary of State back to his answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Winchester (Steve Brine). The whole point of the vaccine roll-out is to ensure that we protect the vulnerable, reduce the death toll and reduce hospitalisations and the pressure on the health service. Given that the vaccine roll-out is going so well and is, I suspect, ahead of where the Secretary of State thought it would be, will he confirm that when schools start going back on 8 March, it will be those two metrics falling—deaths and hospitalisations—that will guide the reopening of not just schools but the rest of the economy?
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2021-02-02
Topic: Health
Matthew John David Hancock (Conservative, Centre-right): The Prime Minister has set out four metrics that we will follow. Deaths and hospitalisations are two of them, and they are both incredibly important. We expect deaths to fall faster than hospitalisations, because older people who are higher up in the JCVI cohorts are more likely to die by a greater degree than they are more likely to use hospital beds. The other two considerations are that we do not see further new variants that put all this at risk and, of course, that the vaccination programme rolls out well. I would not say that the vaccination programme is ahead of plans. I would say that it is on track; I make no further claim than that.
Points of Order — House of Commons, 2016-01-19
Topic: Health
Kate Ofunne Osamor (Labour, Centre-left): On a point of order, Mr Speaker. During Treasury questions, the Chancellor said that the shadow Chancellor had lost his marbles, which I feel was unparliamentary. This comment comes in the week when the Government have been exposed as leaving mental health services underfunded. I just wanted to put it on the record that this comment goes to the heart of their callous attitude towards vulnerable people.
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2021-02-02
Topic: Health
Matthew John David Hancock (Conservative, Centre-right): I agree entirely with my hon. Friend. The Royal College of Psychiatrists has been clear in describing the negative impact of school closures and also the negative impact of the virus getting out of control. The challenge we have is to try to mitigate both those problems, and it is the vaccine that is the best way through.
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2021-02-02
Topic: Health
Matthew John David Hancock (Conservative, Centre-right): We are working with pharmaceutical companies and the scientists to understand whether and where such modifications are needed and how they can be brought to use on the frontline as quickly as is safely possible. That is obviously an important consideration given the new variants that we have seen. We have confidence that, should modifications to vaccines be necessary in large scale, they will be available more quickly than the original vaccines and, just as the first time round, when we got in there early and bought at risk, we are having conversations right now with the pharmaceutical companies to ensure that we are right at the front.
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2021-02-02
Topic: Health
David Thomas Morris (Conservative, Centre-right): There have been scare stories in Lancashire about vaccines being diverted to elsewhere in the country, causing a shortage and perpetuating further urban myths. Will the Secretary of State assure me and the House that my constituents will be covered, that vaccines are not being redirected to other regions of the UK, and that Lancashire will continue to receive the required proportions in the future, safeguarding my constituents?
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2021-02-02
Topic: Health
Matthew John David Hancock (Conservative, Centre-right): Yes, I can give my hon. Friend that absolute assurance. Of course, the supply of vaccines is the rate-limiting step. We have seen the strain on vaccine supply from some of the things that have happened over the past week, and some weeks the supply is greater than in others. The website shows the daily move in the overall supply across the country as a whole. Lancashire will get its fair share and get enough to be able to deliver on the target of the offer to everybody in cohorts 1 to 4 by 15 February. I have looked closely specifically into the figures for the north-west, and it is getting its fair share. I can give my hon. Friend the assurance that the reports circulating on the internet do not come from credible sources.
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2021-02-02
Topic: Health
Matthew John David Hancock (Conservative, Centre-right): The challenge with the proposal the hon. Gentleman puts forward is that vaccinating those who are not as vulnerable to the disease before those who are more vulnerable would essentially increase the overall clinical vulnerability to the disease. I am glad that the hon. Member for Leicester South (Jonathan Ashworth) did not raise this issue as health spokesman on the Labour Front Bench, although I know others on the Labour Front Bench do so. We have to follow the clinical order of priority, because my priority is saving lives.
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2021-02-02
Topic: Health
Julian Charles Sturdy (Conservative, Centre-right): Further to the Prime Minister’s suggestion yesterday in Batley that we may not see a return to different regional tier restrictions due to the virus’s behaviour, how will the Government avoid unfairly disadvantaging areas with low covid rates? Or does the fantastic vaccination programme roll-out mean that the whole country can now make steady progress out of lockdown together?
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2021-02-02
Topic: Health
Matthew John David Hancock (Conservative, Centre-right): That is our goal—that the whole country can make steady progress together. In fact, case rates across the UK are more similar in all parts of the UK than they have been for some time. There were significant regional variations over the autumn, but that is much less widespread now, hence the comments that the Prime Minister made yesterday.
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2021-02-02
Topic: Health
James Michael Davies (Conservative, Centre-right): The development, production and roll-out of vaccines in Britain is increasingly envied across the world, and the Wockhardt factory in north Wales is playing its part in that process. What plans does my right hon. Friend have to increase the production of vaccines in the UK further, both to meet our own needs and to allow us to assist our friends in the Republic of Ireland and elsewhere?
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2021-02-02
Topic: Health
Matthew John David Hancock (Conservative, Centre-right): The onshoring of vaccine manufacturing is an incredibly important part of our strategy. We were previously very, very good at the research and at the regulation of vaccines, but onshore manufacturing was sparse. We have built that manufacturing capability, including at Wockhardt on the Wrexham industrial estate, as my hon. Friend mentioned, and also now with production in Scotland, Teesside and elsewhere, with more to come. It is a strategic choice that this country should make that we should bring onshore the manufacturing in critical industries and of critical products such as vaccines, not least because there is not going to be a global glut of vaccine manufacturing capability for a long time to come. We are at the forefront of the science, and we should be at the forefront of the manufacturing and production.
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2021-02-02
Topic: Health
Matthew John David Hancock (Conservative, Centre-right): I will ensure that the chief medical officer writes to the hon. Lady setting out the precise clinical details of this point, because while she is right, I do not want to opine on the clinical points; I want to make sure that that comes from the top doctor in the land.
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2021-02-02
Topic: Health
Matthew Alexander Vickers (Conservative, Centre-right): A huge debt of gratitude is owed to all those involved in our incredible, world-leading vaccination programme, including Teesside’s hospital, our primary care network and the Fairfield pharmacy, which was one of the first pharmacy-based vaccination hubs around. Can my right hon. Friend confirm when Teesside will benefit from a mass vaccination site, so that we can get more jabs into the arms of Teessiders as soon as possible?
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2021-02-02
Topic: Health
Matthew John David Hancock (Conservative, Centre-right): The performance of people on Teesside in getting the jab rolled out so fast has been absolutely magnificent—particularly, but not only, in Stockton-on-Tees, and I am not just saying that because it was my hon. Friend who asked me that question. It has been a really impressive performance and I am very happy to look into when we might be able to open a Teesside mass vaccination centre, but what I can say is that across Teesside the roll-out is going well and I am grateful to everybody who is coming forward so enthusiastically to get the jab.
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2021-02-02
Topic: Health
Matthew John David Hancock (Conservative, Centre-right): I absolutely understand the point that the hon. Gentleman makes and I join him in what he says. I understand why people who are delivering the vaccine on the ground want to know those forecasts. The challenge is that the supply schedule is lumpy. We do not want to give certainty inaccurately: we do not want to imply that there is certainty where there is no certainty. There is certainty, though, in the fact that we have a high degree of confidence that the second doses will be available and, of course, will be distributed according to need, with the right vaccine for the right second dose going to the right place—we have a full record of that. The second dosing starts in earnest in a couple of months’ time—obviously, 12 weeks on from 4 January, when we shifted the dosing on to a 12-week schedule. We have the logistics under way to ensure that people get access to the right dose to match the first dose that they had. I am very happy to talk to him further if he has any more questions about the logistics of getting this sorted.
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2021-02-02
Topic: Health
Jason McCartney (Conservative, Centre-right): More than 400 people were vaccinated at the new pharmacy-led vaccination centre at Honley village hall yesterday. The new vaccination centre at John Smith’s Stadium in Huddersfield is also open, as Yorkshire continues to lead the way with the vaccine roll-out. Will my right hon. Friend join me in thanking our NHS, the independent community pharmacy involved, and our wonderful community volunteers, who are all part of this great national effort?
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2021-02-02
Topic: Health
Matthew John David Hancock (Conservative, Centre-right): Yes, I will. The vaccination effort right across Yorkshire has been absolutely fantastic, including in West Yorkshire, which my hon. Friend represents, and in South Yorkshire. Yorkshire has just pulled this one out of the bag. We will deliver on that offer to everybody in the top four vulnerable categories by 15 February—in just under two weeks’ time. Then we will get on and vaccinate all the others who are in the vulnerable cohorts. I know that it is hard work, but it is so uplifting. I am really glad to see that happening right across Yorkshire.
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2021-02-02
Topic: Health
Nusrat Munir Ul-Ghani (Conservative, Centre-right): I come with good news from Wealden: the vaccination programme is working at a fantastic pace in my care homes and across the constituency. I come also with thanks to my right hon. Friend and to his leadership from lots of people across Wealden. So I thank him very much, but a Minister’s job is never done. Now I am being flooded by messages from parents, grandparents and teachers who want no further delays to school openings, so any assurances would be welcome. Furthermore, as we know that the lockdown has had an impact on our children’s mental health, health and educational attainment, is research being undertaken by the Department so that we can be ready to offer full wrap-around care for our young people when lockdown is over?
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2021-02-02
Topic: Health
Tobias Martin Ellwood (Conservative, Centre-right): I congratulate my right hon. Friend and the entire team on doing such a phenomenal job in rolling out the life-saving vaccine right throughout the country. It is not, though, in our interest or indeed our character to become a vaccinated island; we have both the means and the desire to help others who do not have such advanced public health infrastructure systems as ours. We are heavily involved in COVAX, Gavi and the encouraging of global vaccine disbursement, but I invite the Secretary of State to go a step further and work with the Secretary of State for Defence and the Foreign Secretary to allocate overseas funds to create an international vaccination taskforce, utilising RFA Argus, our hospital ship, and other military assets to assist practically with the international roll-out of vaccines to developing countries. The UK set an example by stepping forward during the Ebola crisis; I hope we can do the same again today.
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2021-02-02
Topic: Health
Matthew John David Hancock (Conservative, Centre-right): I would be happy to talk to the Secretary of State for Defence about that idea, because we are leaning into the global vaccination effort, not just with the funding to COVAX and Gavi that my right hon. Friend mentioned but with practical support—including, of course, the Oxford vaccine itself, which is the most deployable vaccine and the only one currently being used that has been distributed at cost. AstraZeneca took the decision to license the Oxford vaccine around the world at cost rather than making a profit on it and should be commended for that.
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2021-02-02
Topic: Health
Mark Simon Eastwood (Conservative, Centre-right): Yesterday, I had the pleasure of meeting the Prime Minister at the Al-Hikmah vaccination centre to highlight the importance of people from local communities accepting the offer of a vaccine. What message could my right hon. Friend give to the people of Dewsbury, Mirfield, Kirkburton and Denby Dale who may be thinking twice about having an inoculation when given the opportunity?
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2021-02-02
Topic: Health
Matthew John David Hancock (Conservative, Centre-right): I would say to everybody that they should listen to the my hon. Friend, their local representative, and to all those who have looked at the impact of the vaccine. We can see that it saves lives and that it is safe to take. We can see that the rumours that have spread on the internet are just that—they are rumours, not facts. I would listen to local faith leaders too, from churches, mosques and synagogues right across the country, who are all uniting to say that we should take the jab when it is our turn. It is the right thing for you and it is the right thing for your community.