argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Supporting Disadvantaged Families — House of Commons, 2020-11-09
Topic: Social Welfare
Thérèse Anne Coffey (Conservative, Centre-right): I congratulate my hon. Friend. I know how dedicated he was, before entering this House, to social mobility and tackling poverty, and he continues to be so. I fully agree that a lot of local charities have a particular insight into their communities and are often helped by more national organisations such as FareShare. However, they are not the only ones out there. There are plenty of others trying to make sure that we help people in different ways: not only help to get food on the table but help through some of the wraparound care that is so important for families at this time.
Supporting Disadvantaged Families — House of Commons, 2020-11-09
Topic: Social Welfare
Thérèse Anne Coffey (Conservative, Centre-right): I heard part of the hon. Lady’s question and I think the whole House can agree how much we value carers not only as a Government but often through experiences in our own individual lives. I am conscious that carers allowance is not a salary—it is there as a benefit to help people who undertake that duty. I continue to make sure that we try to offer as much help as we can, as a Government, not only to social services but through how we can help people to undertake these caring responsibilities in as flexible a way as possible.
Supporting Disadvantaged Families — House of Commons, 2020-11-09
Topic: Social Welfare
Andrew John Carter (Conservative, Centre-right): Can I welcome the statement today from the Secretary of State? It is very much an extension to our policy, and it is adapting to the extraordinary circumstances we find ourselves in in this country. Can she confirm that the £170 million scheme builds on the £63 million already announced earlier this year, and as with previous funding allocations, it is local councils that get that cash—in my constituency, it is Warrington Borough Council—because they are best placed to be able to deliver the support that local disadvantaged families need in this time of extraordinary circumstance?
Supporting Disadvantaged Families — House of Commons, 2020-11-09
Topic: Social Welfare
Thérèse Anne Coffey (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend is absolutely right. The people in Warrington will benefit significantly from this addition to what is—in effect, through the covid winter grant—an extension of the local welfare fund, which we had already given money to earlier in the year, as he identifies. I think it is important that we continue to use the strengths of local councils in order to make sure that the help goes to those who need it the most and is really well targeted. I am sure that they will draw on every capability and insight in order to make sure that no child in Warrington will go cold or hungry this winter.
Supporting Disadvantaged Families — House of Commons, 2020-11-09
Topic: Social Welfare
Thérèse Anne Coffey (Conservative, Centre-right): This Government continue to strive to help people who are vulnerable and disadvantaged, and we will continue to do that. I welcome any support given in order to help local communities. I am conscious that we need to continue to try to make sure we reach people of all ages; in particular, this grant is focused on children. There will be flexibility in supporting local organisations to do the right thing, but I also continue to welcome other organisations, such as businesses in the hon. Member’s constituency, that also reach out to help.
Supporting Disadvantaged Families — House of Commons, 2020-11-09
Topic: Education
Thérèse Anne Coffey (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend, with his vast educational experience, will have been a true witness to the benefits that activities like the holiday activity fund can really bring to the future potential of children. I am very happy to say that my hon. Friend the Minister for children will be leading on this programme, with support from the welfare delivery Minister—the Under-Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, my hon. Friend the Member for Colchester (Will Quince)—and I am sure that they will both be delighted to meet him and the lady to whom he refers, because we want to keep learning from success to make sure that every child who is eligible for that support will get equally excellent educational and enriching activities over the coming holidays.
Supporting Disadvantaged Families — House of Commons, 2020-11-09
Topic: Macroeconomics
Thérèse Anne Coffey (Conservative, Centre-right): To be honest, I do not really know what the hon. Lady is talking about and I reject her assertion—[Interruption.] I reject her assertion and the comments that she made. I think she should consider them carefully. Hon. Members right across this House want to do the right thing by children. We have been particularly affected as a country and as a nation by the coronavirus pandemic. She should not—[Interruption.] She should not underestimate what has happened over the last 10 years. This Government are in a place to actually extend the financial support that we have offered to families, businesses and other organisations—to many charities—across the country. Frankly, it may have happened 10 years ago, but when Labour left government, it left nothing; there was no money left. It has taken 10 years of hard work, the ongoing support to this country and the passion of this country in order to recover from the horrific economic deficit. It is through that that we continue to be able to borrow to make sure the issues today can be addressed and we continue to bounce back. Things such as the furlough scheme will have helped the hon. Lady’s constituents get through this difficult time, and I am sad that she seems to have just dismissed it entirely.
Supporting Disadvantaged Families — House of Commons, 2020-11-09
Topic: Social Welfare
Miriam Joy Cates (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank my right hon. Friend for her statement. I am delighted that, in my constituency, Barnsley Council will be receiving more than £900,000 and Sheffield will be receiving more than £2 million from the covid winter support grant, which will go to support our most vulnerable families this winter There has been a huge amount of coverage in the past few weeks about free school meals, but of course this has never been a debate about school meals, which by definition are provided in school in term time and have never been intended to support families in crisis. So I welcome this comprehensive approach to supporting the families who have been most affected by this pandemic. This year more than any other year, families’ circumstances have changed so quickly. So can my right hon. Friend confirm that local authorities will be able to use this to support all families, not just those who have previously registered for support?
Supporting Disadvantaged Families — House of Commons, 2020-11-09
Topic: Social Welfare
Thérèse Anne Coffey (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend is absolutely right to welcome the funding, which will support her constituents. Working with local councils, we want to ensure that money reaches the people who really need it, and there will not be pre-qualification through other ways. Councils are well placed with sources of information to make sure they help children not just at school age but before that. They will have access to benefits data. They have access to other data from social services and health visitors —the list goes on—so they can really target their support. I am sure they will also be helped by many local charities and organisations, such as those in my hon. Friend’s constituency.
Supporting Disadvantaged Families — House of Commons, 2020-11-09
Topic: Social Welfare
Thérèse Anne Coffey (Conservative, Centre-right): I know that the hon. Lady is interested in universal basic income. She once asked me a question in this House that took more than a minute. The answer was no then and it is no now to UBI. I am conscious that she is being tenacious on this matter, but she will not make UBI happen under this Government.
Supporting Disadvantaged Families — House of Commons, 2020-11-09
Topic: Labor
Jack Edgar Brereton (Conservative, Centre-right): I join my hon. Friends the Members for Stoke-on-Trent North (Jonathan Gullis) and for Stoke-on-Trent Central (Jo Gideon) in fully supporting this announcement. Unemployment is above the UK average in Stoke-on-Trent, so schemes to help low-income families and get people into work are vital. What steps is my right hon. Friend’s Department taking to support those who have found themselves out of work to find new employment opportunities?
Supporting Disadvantaged Families — House of Commons, 2020-11-09
Topic: Labor
Thérèse Anne Coffey (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend is right to point out that, while we continue to support people through the welfare system, we know that the best way ultimately for people to get out of poverty is to work. That is why, through our plan for jobs, we have been extending the number of training courses that people can do. In particular, a new scheme called JETS—job entry targeted support—tries to get people ready to go back into work. The jobs finding support scheme is particularly tailored to help people who had been in work for a long time; to try to find work is a new experience for them. There are also swaps: in some sectors, the future does not look quite so bright for the next few years, and we want to encourage people to consider swapping careers, even if it is just in the short term, to ensure they can try to get back into work. That is a successful programme for which there is huge demand. We are seeing huge delivery of these programmes.
Supporting Disadvantaged Families — House of Commons, 2020-11-09
Topic: Social Welfare
Thérèse Anne Coffey (Conservative, Centre-right): If somebody comes to make a universal credit claim, they can get money pretty quickly—within about three or four days. Yes, that is an advance but there is an earlier payment of the sum that would generally be available over the year. Instead of getting 12 payments, a recipient will get 13. It is important that if people need help, they get it, but then the payment will be spread over the rest of the year.
Supporting Disadvantaged Families — House of Commons, 2020-11-09
Topic: Social Welfare
Kevin Paul Hollinrake (Conservative, Centre-right): As co-chair of the all-party group on poverty, may I welcome my right hon. Friend’s statement? Despite protestations from the Opposition, I do not remember any similar package of support being available in 2008-09, when millions of people faced similar hardship. It is important to take a strategic approach, so will my right hon. Friend outline how this strategy will dovetail with the national food strategy, which was commissioned by this Government in 2019 and has made similar recommendations?
Supporting Disadvantaged Families — House of Commons, 2020-11-09
Topic: Social Welfare
Thérèse Anne Coffey (Conservative, Centre-right): People can move to universal credit, apart from that small cohort of people who currently receive the severe disability premium, and they will be able to make that move from January. It is important that people check to see whether they will be better off, but we think that the vast majority of recipients will be better off on universal credit than they are on legacy benefits, and we will do what we can to help them in that journey.
Supporting Disadvantaged Families — House of Commons, 2020-11-09
Topic: Education
Caroline Ansell (Conservative, Centre-right): I sincerely thank my right hon. Friend and the Ministers who have worked intensively during this period to bring these measures to the House today. They are incredibly welcome and will make a real difference to children in Eastbourne and Willingdon. I recognise that they go further, wider and deeper than the motion I supported two weeks ago. I particularly welcome the extension of the holiday and food activities programme, not least because we have seen schools close this year, and the learning gap has widened. These measures will help with that and be impactful. The programme is new to Eastbourne. I have seen the success of pilot schemes in other areas, and it is something I hugely welcome. Will my right hon. Friend assure me that good practice in other areas will be shared with county councils that do not have experience of delivering these programmes, to ensure that every child benefits to the maximum?
Supporting Disadvantaged Families — House of Commons, 2020-11-09
Topic: Social Welfare
Thérèse Anne Coffey (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank my hon. Friend for her remarks, and she is right to recognise that this support package is much more comprehensive in reaching disadvantaged children. I particularly welcome her support for the national roll-out of the holiday activities programme. Not only will there be guidance, but I genuinely hope that we can do something innovative regarding how we share best practice between the most successful schemes. We must encourage charities, in a covid-secure way, to find out what is happening in different parts of the country, so that they will be well prepared when these programmes start at Easter.
Supporting Disadvantaged Families — House of Commons, 2020-11-09
Topic: Social Welfare
Siobhan Kathleen Baillie (Conservative, Centre-right): A long-term and local approach was always going to be the best thing to help families. I feel quite emotional about this, because I was told that I was starving children and that I was killing children—I had the worst abuse ever. I abstained because I wanted to help the Government to look at that long-term approach. If Opposition Members really thought that children would be starving over the half-term holidays, they would not have brought that just before the half-term holidays. The local approach is working and I ask the Secretary of State to give praise to charities such as The Long Table, the Freezers of Love initiative and Paganhill community groups, and say to them that the money and the funding will be there, because they know where the families are who they can help.
Supporting Disadvantaged Families — House of Commons, 2020-11-09
Topic: Social Welfare
Thérèse Anne Coffey (Conservative, Centre-right): It is nice to see my hon. Friend back in the House after her maternity leave. She speaks with appropriate compassion and she recognises some of the local organisations in her area. I encourage her to work with them and her council to help to ensure that the £170 million funding can be effectively distributed, so that the most disadvantaged children and families are truly helped. We want to make sure that that activity continues to support similar children through the holiday activity fund.
Financial Services Bill — House of Commons, 2020-11-09
Topic: Foreign Trade
Robert James MacGillivray Neill (Conservative, Centre-right): I refer to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests. May I say, as chair of the all-party group on Gibraltar, how delighted I am to see this in the Bill? I know that that is echoed by Her Majesty’s Government of Gibraltar and the whole Gibraltar community. The Government have made good on a promise and it is very welcome. The Minister is right to set out that some 20% of UK insurance contracts are written by Gibraltar-based insurers. Will he undertake that, as well as this important piece of legislation, we will now build on it with his colleagues in other Departments to develop a full free market—a free-trade area effectively—between the UK and Gibraltar in services and goods?
Financial Services Bill — House of Commons, 2020-11-09
Topic: Law and Crime
Kevin Paul Hollinrake (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend mentions economic crime, the prevention of fraud and the penalties for fraud, but one of the things the Government are committed to doing is bringing forward a corporate offence for the failure to prevent economic crime. It is not within this Bill. Is there any reason why not? What timescale might we see around that kind of legislation?
Small Breweries Relief — House of Commons, 2020-11-09
Topic: Agriculture
Maria Frances Lewis Miller (Conservative, Centre-right): The evidence that the Government need includes a baseline of production so that they know how many breweries are producing however much beer over a period of time and can then calculate the appropriate rate of tax relief so that it is cost-neutral. How will the Minister do that when over the past six months there has been such a distortion in the market with regard to production rates? Many of the breweries that would previously have been well above the 5,000 hectolitre barrier will probably now be well within it. Will that not make her life very difficult? Would it not be better to delay things until the industry has settled down again?
Internal Market: Northern Ireland and Great Britain — House of Commons, 2020-09-30
Topic: Foreign Trade
Brandon Kenneth Lewis (Conservative, Centre-right): We have committed to delivering unfettered access for Northern Ireland businesses to the whole UK market. We continue to discuss our approach to the protocol with the European Union, and we have put in place a safety net to ensure that qualifying goods do not face exit procedures upon leaving Northern Ireland for the rest of the UK, delivering our promise of unfettered access.
Internal Market: Northern Ireland and Great Britain — House of Commons, 2020-09-30
Topic: Foreign Trade
Mark James Harper (Conservative, Centre-right): I am grateful to the Secretary of State for that answer, and I welcome the UK Internal Market Bill being passed by the House, because it does indeed put in place the benefit for Northern Ireland businesses that he describes. Can he say a bit more about how businesses based in my constituency, for example, can export to Northern Ireland without restrictions and how we will ensure that businesses and constituents in Northern Ireland get unrivalled access to the whole United Kingdom market?
Internal Market: Northern Ireland and Great Britain — House of Commons, 2020-09-30
Topic: Foreign Trade
Brandon Kenneth Lewis (Conservative, Centre-right): My right hon. Friend makes a good point. There is a difference with businesses in Great Britain trading with Northern Ireland. We are determined to give them the certainty that they want and need. That is an important part of delivering on the protocol, which says that it "should impact as little as possible on the everyday life of communities" That means ensuring good free trade. The protocol makes it clear that there will be some changes for goods movements into Northern Ireland from Great Britain. We are consulting businesses in Northern Ireland and working with our partners in the European Union to deliver on that, and there will be a slimmed-down Finance Bill that includes all the commitments we have made to the people of Northern Ireland that are outstanding at that point.
Internal Market: Northern Ireland and Great Britain — House of Commons, 2020-09-30
Topic: Foreign Trade
Brandon Kenneth Lewis (Conservative, Centre-right): The right hon. Gentleman makes a good point. At the heart of our approach is our determination to ensure that trade flows freely, so that businesses trading in and with Northern Ireland can continue to trade properly. We will make full use of the provisions in the protocol to deliver on that, and we will continue to discuss this with the European Union. As I say, there are still issues that we are discussing as part of the free trade agreement and through the specialist Joint Committee, but we will ensure that all the commitments made by myself, the Prime Minister and other colleagues at the Dispatch Box are delivered through a slimmed-down Finance Bill later this year.
Internal Market: Northern Ireland and Great Britain — House of Commons, 2020-09-30
Topic: International Affairs
Brandon Kenneth Lewis (Conservative, Centre-right): Yes. The withdrawal agreement includes provision for the Government to define the qualifying status for goods and businesses in Northern Ireland, as part of ensuring that they benefit from unfettered access. We are also engaging with businesses, as the right hon. Gentleman and his colleagues are. I have been engaging with businesses—and will do so again later today—in Northern Ireland and with the Executive to work through the means for delivering that qualifying status. There will be an ability for us to deliver that, and we will do it by secondary legislation under the withdrawal Act before the end of the year.
Internal Market: Northern Ireland and Great Britain — House of Commons, 2020-09-30
Topic: Foreign Trade
Brandon Kenneth Lewis (Conservative, Centre-right): Northern Ireland businesses responded very positively to the Command Paper and the guidelines we set out earlier in the summer. The UK Internal Market Bill delivers on that and on the key objective of guaranteeing unfettered access. I think it is a bit rich for the hon. Lady to talk about this. We are delivering unfettered access—something the SNP wants to block by putting another border between Scotland and the rest of the UK.
UK Internal Market Bill: Effect on the Union — House of Commons, 2020-09-30
Topic: International Affairs
Robin Caspar Walker (Conservative, Centre-right): The UK’s internal market has functioned seamlessly for centuries. As the transition period ends, we will ensure that the most successful Union of nations in the world continues to thrive, and we will do this while maintaining the Belfast/Good Friday agreement and the gains of the peace process. The Secretary of State and I regularly meet Cabinet and ministerial colleagues across Government on this point, including through the Cabinet Committee on Union policy implementation, which is driving forward the Government’s Union strategy.
UK Internal Market Bill: Effect on the Union — House of Commons, 2020-09-30
Topic: Foreign Trade
Sarah Elizabeth Atherton (Conservative, Centre-right): To continue a theme, Wrexham has one of the largest trading estates in the UK, and trading with Northern Ireland via Holyhead port is vital for Wrexham’s future growth. Will the Minister give us reassurances that from January, seamless trade around the UK will continue as it is essential to our Union’s growth and prosperity?
UK Internal Market Bill: Effect on the Union — House of Commons, 2020-09-30
Topic: Foreign Trade
Robin Caspar Walker (Conservative, Centre-right): Yes, I can. That is why the Government are very pleased that the Bill has completed its passage through the House this week. The provisions in the Bill ensure that there will be no new checks, controls or administrative processes on goods moving from Northern Ireland to Great Britain and provide a power for Ministers to disapply or modify the requirement for export declarations or other export procedures on such movements.
UK Internal Market Bill: Effect on the Union — House of Commons, 2020-09-30
Topic: Foreign Trade
Robin Caspar Walker (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Lady rightly calls for certainty, but in making the criticism that she does, she appears to be criticising the protocol that her Front Benchers have been arguing that we cannot interfere with. It is essential that we deliver on the protocol and deliver certainty for businesses, and the steps that we have taken in the UK Internal Market Bill help us to do so. I am not going to take lectures on upholding the integrity of our Union from a party that refuses to rule out backing a divisive second independence referendum in Scotland.
UK Internal Market Bill: Effect on the Union — House of Commons, 2020-09-30
Topic: International Affairs
Robin Caspar Walker (Conservative, Centre-right): We have been repeatedly clear through the passage of the Bill that we are respecting and delivering on the protocol. We remain absolutely committed to the peace process, the Good Friday agreement and to acting within the UK’s constitutional set-up, and that is what we will continue to do.