argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Beeston Station — House of Commons, 2018-09-12
Topic: Transportation
Nusrat Munir Ul-Ghani (Conservative, Centre-right): I congratulate my right hon. Friend the Member for Broxtowe (Anna Soubry) on securing this important debate about access to Beeston station and on highlighting the good work done locally to take the project forward. She is not only a powerful advocate for her constituency; I believe she also nurtured and supported the local action group, Friends of Beeston Station, and put it on the map. A huge debt of gratitude is owed to Trish, Chris and Sarah—unfortunately I did not catch their surnames, but no doubt they will be watching this on the website or see it in my right hon. Friend’s newsletter In recent years, expectations about accessibility have changed, both among disabled passengers and in the railway industry. That is particularly so following the success of our transport networks in providing accessible journeys during the 2012 Olympics and Paralympics. As my right hon. Friend mentioned, the extra investment in our rail infrastructure has meant improved services and greater passenger satisfaction. Unfortunately, though, many of our mainline railway stations date from Victorian times. These 19th-century stations, including Beeston, which I believe opened as far back as 1839, were not built with the needs of 21st-century passengers in mind. Interestingly, I tried to look up who the MP was in 1839 and the computer said, "Do not know," so maybe my right hon. Friend can let me know at some point. No doubt, the constituency did not have as strong a female advocate as it does today. The Victorian stations have left us with a huge task in opening up the rail network to disabled passengers. Only around a fifth of stations have proper step-free access into the station and between platforms. Clearly, accessible stations make a huge difference to the journey experience not only of people with reduced mobility, but, as my right hon. Friend pointed out, those carrying heavy luggage or pushing unwieldy pushchairs I understand how important stations are to passengers, and every rail journey involves at least two of them, but as well as providing access points to the network, they are often important to the wider community I am keen to improve access for disabled passengers across the rail network. The Department has therefore continued and, indeed, extended the Access for All programme. As my right hon. Friend will know, the inclusive transport strategy published on 25 July included a commitment to extend our Access for All programme across the next rail control period, starting in 2019, with an additional £300 million of funding from the public purse. This funding is the most appropriate way to deal with the critical areas that she mentioned regarding accessibility challenges at Beeston station It must be noted that the station has not been nominated previously. I know that my right hon. Friend is as curious about that as I am, and she may want to ask the train operating company why it is the case. However, we are where we are, and we have asked the industry to nominate stations for the new funding by 16 November this year.
Beeston Station — House of Commons, 2018-09-12
Topic: Transportation
Anna Mary Soubry (Conservative, Centre-right): To be fair, the company has to prioritise the stations that it thinks are absolutely at the top of the pile. There is at least one station locally—Langley Mill, I think—where access is even worse, although it is difficult to believe how it could be. To be fair to the company, it had to put forward its top priorities, but I hope that Beeston—and, I think, Bingham, which the Minister will not know—are now right at the top of its list.
Beeston Station — House of Commons, 2018-09-12
Topic: Transportation
Nusrat Munir Ul-Ghani (Conservative, Centre-right): My right hon. Friend is being as fair as she usually is, but today we have put Beeston on the map The deadline is 16 November. Nominated stations will be selected based on their annual footfall, which we heard about, weighted by the incidence of disability in the area. We will take into account local factors such as proximity to a hospital or the availability of third-party funding for the project. We will also ensure that there is a fair geographical spread of projects across the country. I encourage my right hon. Friend to liaise with East Midlands Trains and ask it to put the station forward and, ideally, to seek a proportion of third-party match funding that will help to weight the business case This new funding builds on the success of the Access for All programme, which was first launched in 2006 as a 10-year programme, but which we have continued to extend. We are also pressing the industry to comply with its legal obligations to ensure that work at stations meets current accessibility standards, not just on flagship projects such as Crossrail or the redevelopment of Birmingham New Street, but as part of the business-as-usual work of their renewals programme—for example, by making sure that any replacement bridges have lifts or ramps. It is important that the industry meets its obligations to anyone who needs assistance, whether or not booked ahead of time. People should expect the best possible help to use the trains, particularly at stations that do not have proper accessible facilities My right hon. Friend has written to the Department several times asking for a Minister to visit Beeston station to see the fantastic work that has been carried out by Friends of Beeston Station, to admire its beauty and to see some of the issues that it faces. I am delighted to accept that invitation, and I look forward to visiting the station after the conference recess. I will work with my right hon. Friend to continue to help her to champion her constituency.
Beeston Station — House of Commons, 2018-09-12
Topic: Transportation
Nusrat Munir Ul-Ghani (Conservative, Centre-right): My right hon. Friend is inundated with guests. No doubt, she will take care of me. I am keen to have a drink at the Beeston pub she mentioned, and maybe all the other guests could pop along, invited or not I welcome my right hon. Friend’s remarks on HS2. We had a powerful debate on it this morning. It is important to remember that it is about not just capacity, but ensuring that we have productivity and prosperity north of London I hope that my right hon. Friend and other Members have been reassured that the Government are committed to investment that will improve rail services for all. The Government will ensure that passengers continue to benefit from our record levels of investment. The Department recognises the need to look to the future, to ensure that the railways work for those who use them—passengers, freight and local communities. That means delivering the enhancements already on the way, as well as working with others to develop the next generation of improvements I welcome my right hon. Friend’s invitation and look forward to visiting Beeston and seeing the application Question put and agreed to.
Export Strategy — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: Foreign Trade
Liam Fox (Conservative, Centre-right): This is the first time that I have spoken in the House since the death of Sir Jeremy Heywood. He was a dedicated public servant to whom I, among many, owe a great debt. I am very fortunate to have been able to call him a friend as well as a colleague. I am sure that Members on both sides of the House would join in a tribute to Sir Jeremy The export strategy launched in the summer consists of the four ways in which Governments can make a difference: encourage, inform, connect and finance. It is only by making it easier for businesses that we will increase our exporting performance. Governments do not create wealth, businesses do.
Export Strategy — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: Foreign Trade
James Morris (Conservative, Centre-right): Last week, I visited Crosby Premier Stampings in Cradley Heath. The company has been forging for nearly 100 years in the Black country, and currently uses traditional and high-tech methods. It is increasing its global sales, including to China. Will the Secretary of State explain how the export strategy will help other such small and medium-sized enterprises to develop their export business worldwide?
Export Strategy — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: Foreign Trade
Liam Fox (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend is a great champion of business in the Black country, but all businesses are different, and we want to help both new and seasoned exporters of all sizes with the sort of support that is appropriate to the barriers and opportunities that they will face. SMEs in particular will benefit from increased peer-to-peer learning, improved access to specialist advice, and the thousands of export opportunities on the great.gov.uk website.
Export Strategy — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: Foreign Trade
Edward Julian Egerton Leigh (Conservative, Centre-right): When I was a Minister at the Department of Trade and Industry, the Trade Minister had no control over trade policy—they just went on jollies around the world promoting trade. As we will now be stuck in the EU customs union for years to come, with no ability to make our own trade deals, will the Secretary of State change the name of his Department to the "Department for International Trade Promotion and Engagement with the Customs Union"?
Export Strategy — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: Foreign Trade
Liam Fox (Conservative, Centre-right): The Government’s intention is that we will leave the European Union in March, we will exit the implementation period in December 2020, and we will have a fully independent trade policy. We have already begun—and finished—the first four consultations on independent trade agreements with other countries.
Export Strategy — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: International Affairs
Liam Fox (Conservative, Centre-right): We have made it very clear that, in the areas where the EU already has an agreement, our first aim is continuity. We have also made it very clear that we have further ambition for bespoke agreements with those countries.
Export Strategy — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: Foreign Trade
Michael Mark Prisk (Conservative, Centre-right): One key part of the Government’s strategy is to build an extensive business-to-business network of exporters. What progress has been made on that? In particular, what role are business organisations playing so that we can foster such a network?
Foreign Direct Investment — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: Foreign Trade
Graham Charles Stuart (Conservative, Centre-right): The UK, I am pleased to say, remains the No. 1 destination in Europe for foreign direct investment. We have recently published analyses of the positive economic impact of FDI, which show the benefits of investment to the UK and how the Department is delivering national wealth by attracting investors to our key industries.
Foreign Direct Investment — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: Foreign Trade
Alexander John Gervase Chalk (Conservative, Centre-right): Foreign direct investment in the UK has been directly responsible for more than half a million jobs since 2010, including hundreds in my constituency. Whatever the shape of future trade policy, will the Minister assure me that, building on that figure, increasing our attractiveness to foreign direct investment remains a priority for this Government?
Foreign Direct Investment — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: Foreign Trade
Graham Charles Stuart (Conservative, Centre-right): I can confirm that the hon. Gentleman does live in a parallel universe, but it is one that he shares with his Front Benchers. His parallel universe is entirely divorced from the reality that investors are coming to the UK. We are the No. 1 foreign direct investment destination in Europe. We have the largest stock, and that is why we have been able to support more than half a million new jobs since 2010. The biggest threat, investors tell me, is that of Labour coming to power.
Foreign Direct Investment — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: Foreign Trade
Philip Thomas Hollobone (Conservative, Centre-right): During the referendum, "Project Fear" told us that global business interest in the UK would collapse if people voted to leave. Can the Minister confirm whether foreign direct investment has gone up or down since the referendum in June 2016?
Foreign Direct Investment — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: Foreign Trade
Graham Charles Stuart (Conservative, Centre-right): I am glad to confirm to my hon. Friend that our stock of foreign direct investment has gone up. We remain the No. 1 destination in Europe and are seeing companies in so many sectors coming here. Investors have some concerns about Brexit but, as I have said, what they are really alarmed about is the prospect of Labour seizing their assets and destroying the job creation that investment brings.
Foreign Direct Investment — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: Foreign Trade
Graham Charles Stuart (Conservative, Centre-right): The UNCTAD figures that measure foreign direct investment showed the UK moving above the United States into third in the first six months of this year, but the hon. Gentleman is entirely right to say that they include intra-company loans. Any figures around flow should be treated with caution; the most important thing is the stock of foreign direct investment in this country. As my hon. Friend the Member for Kettering (Mr Hollobone) said, if we had listened to some, we would have expected divestment. There was no divestment; there were increases in investment. In the last year, if I may deal with what is most important to me and my constituents, there were 75,000 new jobs created by foreign direct investment.
China: Trade and Investment — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: Foreign Trade
Liam Fox (Conservative, Centre-right): I have made five visits to China this year. The most recent was when I led the UK delegation to China’s International Import Expo in Shanghai this month, supporting British firms to sign deals worth over £2 billion.
China: Trade and Investment — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: Foreign Trade
Liam Fox (Conservative, Centre-right): Our ratio of goods and services exports to the world outside the European Union is roughly 50:50. Eighty per cent. of our exports to China are goods, which suggests that the Chinese service market is not as open as it should be. Therefore, much of our effort is based on trying to encourage the Government of China to open up its services, which of course would be of benefit to the United Kingdom, the world’s second biggest services exporter.
China: Trade and Investment — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: Foreign Trade
Liam Fox (Conservative, Centre-right): We are conducting a joint trade and investment review with China as part of looking ahead to deepen that relationship. Under the UK-China Joint Economic and Trade Commission, we lobby for increased market access sector by sector. I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for his comments; it is not the highest publicity aspect of the Department for International Trade, but opening up a sector worth quarter of a billion pounds to Northern Ireland is a big achievement.
China: Trade and Investment — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: Foreign Trade
Liam Fox (Conservative, Centre-right): We know from a number of consumer surveys that about 60% of Chinese consumers say that they would pay a higher price for produce just because it is made in the United Kingdom. We are associated with the quality end of the global market, which is the rising market in China, and I expect our exports there to continue to grow apace.
Creative Industries — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: Foreign Trade
Liam Fox (Conservative, Centre-right): The UK is home to a world-leading creative industries sector, which we will continue to support as part of our modern and ambitious trade policy. UK creative industries exported £40.2 billion of goods and services in 2016, and we recently completed a public consultation that will inform our future approach in trade agreements.
Creative Industries — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: Foreign Trade
Liam Fox (Conservative, Centre-right): That is exactly what we are seeking to achieve in the agreement the Prime Minister reaches—I take it that the hon. Gentleman is referring to the European market. Not only do we want to secure continued tariff-free EU access, but we want further liberalisation so that we increase potential global trade, too.
Creative Industries — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: Foreign Trade
Liam Fox (Conservative, Centre-right): On services, we want an open and liberal arrangement with the European Union that goes well beyond the current World Trade Organisation commitments that both sides have, so we will want not just continuity of liberalisation, but an increase.
Creative Industries — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: Foreign Trade
Liam Fox (Conservative, Centre-right): We will be leaving the European Union. It is important to note that sometimes the creative industries sector is generally underappreciated for the contribution it makes to the earnings of this country, not only through exports—I mentioned the £40.2 billion of goods and services exports—but through the income it generates for the United Kingdom. It is an important sector, which is why we put it at the heart of not only our industrial policy, but our trade policy.
Food and Agricultural Standards — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: Foreign Trade
Questions: Whether food and agricultural imports will have to meet the same (a) food safety and (b) sanitary and phytosanitary standards as domestic products under new free trade agreements after the UK leaves the EU.
George Michael Edward Hollingbery (Conservative, Centre-right): The 40 deals to which the hon. Gentleman refers are, of course, the deals that the EU currently has with partners. Our ambition is to transition those trade deals exactly as they are—or at least as closely as possible—and they contain the current measures.
Food and Agricultural Standards — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: Agriculture
Questions: Whether food and agricultural imports will have to meet the same (a) food safety and (b) sanitary and phytosanitary standards as domestic products under new free trade agreements after the UK leaves the EU.
Neil Quentin Gordon Parish (Conservative, Centre-right): We not only have really high welfare and hygiene standards, but reduce much antibiotic use by producing good-quality food. Can we be assured that food that does not meet those standards will not come into the country and that those standards will not be frittered away in an agreement on service industries?
Food and Agricultural Standards — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: Agriculture
Questions: Whether food and agricultural imports will have to meet the same (a) food safety and (b) sanitary and phytosanitary standards as domestic products under new free trade agreements after the UK leaves the EU.
George Michael Edward Hollingbery (Conservative, Centre-right): I can say to my hon. Friend the Chair of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee that we absolutely have that intention. It is very straightforward. When I am abroad, I find on a regular basis, as the Secretary of State has said, that it is the commitment to high standards in the UK market that so motivates consumers to buy our products. Not only is having these high standards the right thing to do, but there is no rational commercial incentive to do otherwise.
Food and Agricultural Standards — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: Foreign Trade
Questions: Whether food and agricultural imports will have to meet the same (a) food safety and (b) sanitary and phytosanitary standards as domestic products under new free trade agreements after the UK leaves the EU.
George Michael Edward Hollingbery (Conservative, Centre-right): I can only refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer I gave moments ago. We are scoping potential trade deals with all the partners with whom we have announced that we are seeking to do free trade deals, and our position on these standards remains exactly the same: we will not be changing UK law in this regard.
Automotive Industry — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: Foreign Trade
Questions: What steps he is taking to ensure that the UK automotive industry can continue to trade with the EU without disruption after the UK leaves the EU.; What steps he is taking to ensure that the UK automotive industry can continue to trade with the EU without disruption after the UK leaves the EU.
Graham Charles Stuart (Conservative, Centre-right): The UK’s automotive sector is one of our strongest industries and, for that reason, it has been at the heart of our negotiations with the EU. The agreement announced last night will protect integrated supply chains and allow the industry to continue to thrive.
Automotive Industry — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: Foreign Trade
Questions: What steps he is taking to ensure that the UK automotive industry can continue to trade with the EU without disruption after the UK leaves the EU.; What steps he is taking to ensure that the UK automotive industry can continue to trade with the EU without disruption after the UK leaves the EU.
Graham Charles Stuart (Conservative, Centre-right): We have set up the Trade Remedies Authority, which I note the Labour party voted against. We have put in place all the measures necessary to ensure that producers are protected from dumping. It was a shame that the Labour party voted against the very measures that sought to protect British jobs, and I do not know why the hon. Lady joined those on her Front Bench in doing so.
Food and Agricultural Standards — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: Agriculture
Questions: What discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on ensuring that food and agricultural imports meet the same standards as domestic products after the UK has left the EU.
George Michael Edward Hollingbery (Conservative, Centre-right): My ministerial colleagues and I regularly meet our counterparts from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to discuss a range of issues. When it comes to products imported to the UK, quality, safety and performance will continue to be paramount. Without exception, imports must meet all the relevant UK product rules and regulations.
Food and Agricultural Standards — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: Agriculture
Questions: What discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on ensuring that food and agricultural imports meet the same standards as domestic products after the UK has left the EU.
George Michael Edward Hollingbery (Conservative, Centre-right): I have noted some of the discussions on the Agriculture Bill, which I read earlier today, and I have noted the discussions on this. I have to say, and the hon. Lady should take some real encouragement from this fact, that the standards on these issues in the UK are already higher than they are in the EU. That, I think, should give the House confidence as to the UK’s intention on this. I will repeat one more time: there is absolutely no intention that the Government will reduce their standards in this area.
Gender-responsive Analysis — House of Commons, 2018-11-15
Topic: Foreign Trade
Questions: If he will ensure that a gender-responsive analysis is conducted at each stage in the development of new trade agreements after the UK leaves the EU.
Liam Fox (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Lady raises a very important point. It was one of the points we considered at the World Trade Organisation meeting of Trade Ministers in Buenos Aires. We looked at a study showing that of companies that trade only offline, four out of five are owned or run by men. Of those that run only online, four out of five are run or owned by women. This indicates that e-commerce is one of the prime development tools that we can use. The liberalisation of e-commerce and creating a global network of regulation is therefore one of the best ways we can combine trade and development policy, specifically to help women experience the benefits of the global economy.