argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Animal Welfare Offences — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Agriculture
Victoria Mary Boswell Prentis (Conservative, Centre-right): Enforcement is, of course, a matter for local police forces, but what we can do in this place is to make sure that the right laws are in place to give them the tools that they need to stamp out animal cruelty.
Animal Welfare Offences — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Law and Crime
Neil Quentin Gordon Parish (Conservative, Centre-right): There has been much laudable support for this and many good intentions, but since 2016, when we had the Select Committee report recommendation to bring in five-year maximum sentencing, each Government have decided they are going to do it and it is still not done. My hon. Friend and constituency neighbour the Member for West Dorset (Chris Loder) has put forward his Bill, so this is about making sure that the Government will support it and make time, in Government time, to get this through, because we must not prevaricate any longer. With a maximum six-month sentence, and only four months if someone pleads guilty, it is absolutely ridiculous that we cannot bring in stronger sentencing.
UK-grown Produce — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Agriculture
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): The Government are determined to help our farmers and food producers to increase sales domestically and internationally. We welcome efforts from all parts of the food chain to promote UK produce, including the promotional work done by groups like the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board. We have recently co-funded a consumer-facing milk campaign. We continue to work with the AHDB and others on future promotional work.
UK-grown Produce — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Agriculture
Daniel Rayne Kruger (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank the Secretary of State for that answer, which is very welcome indeed. Does he agree that food produced in other countries using techniques that drive up yield and drive down costs but are illegal here in the UK should be subject to import tariffs that make those techniques economically pointless?
UK-grown Produce — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Agriculture
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): I do agree with my hon. Friend. The use of tariff policy to protect producers and to safeguard against certain types of production is indeed a legitimate use of tariff policy, alongside other measures such as the sanitary and phytosanitary chapter that we are negotiating.
Healthy and Sustainable Food — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Agriculture
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): We have commissioned the national food strategy independent review. Other Government policies are addressing healthy food provision, including the tackling obesity strategy, healthy start vouchers and free school meals. Sustainable food production is absolutely at the heart of our future agriculture policy.
Healthy and Sustainable Food — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Social Welfare
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): We have put in place a number of interventions to help people struggling with food affordability, particularly in lockdown and its aftermath. We continue to keep all these policies under review. We have the free school meals voucher system that ran, as the hon. Gentleman says, over the summer, and there are other measures that we have been working on with local authorities.
Smaller Farmers: Supermarket Prices — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Agriculture
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): We want farmers to get a fair price for their produce, and the Government are committed to tackling the contractual unfairness that exists in the agrifood supply chain. Through the Agriculture Bill, we are seeking to strengthen the position of farmers by improving transparency in the supply chain, and there are new powers in the Bill to introduce statutory codes of contractual practice.
Smaller Farmers: Supermarket Prices — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Agriculture
Christopher Lionel John Loder (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank my right hon. Friend for his reply, but the supermarket Sainsbury’s is threatening to tear up the contracts of small dairy farmers in West Dorset that supply it with milk if they refuse to sell it a percentage of their calves. Does he agree that Sainsbury’s is abusing its dominant position, and will he support me in defending small farmers across the country from these predatory supermarkets?
Smaller Farmers: Supermarket Prices — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Agriculture
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): I am happy to meet my hon. Friend to discuss this issue in more detail. We now have in place the groceries code adjudicator, which regulates the types of contracts that supermarkets can put in place and precludes certain practices, but through the Agriculture Bill, we can go further and stipulate further requirements in contracts in future.
Flood Defences — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Environment
Harriett Mary Morison Baldwin (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank the Minister personally and the Secretary of State for all they did to ensure that funding will deliver a scheme for Tenbury Wells. May I ask her to encourage from the Dispatch Box the Environment Agency to crack on and get a socially distanced consultation under way on its preferred design?
Animal Welfare Standards — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Agriculture
Victoria Mary Boswell Prentis (Conservative, Centre-right): This country has some of the highest animal welfare standards in the world. We have modernised standards for dog breeding, changed the way we do pet sales, brought in a world-leading ivory ban and introduced mandatory CCTV in slaughterhouses. We are going further, as we said we would in our manifesto, to end excessively long journeys for farm animals, to ban primates as pets and to ban imports from trophy hunting.
Animal Welfare Standards — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Agriculture
Thomas William Randall (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank the Minister for that answer, which will reassure the many Gedling residents who write to me on animal welfare issues. As our manifesto made clear, leaving the European Union gives us the opportunity to enhance standards, not reduce them. Given that, does my hon. Friend agree that we should perhaps stop playing party politics on this issue and get behind the many initiatives that the Government have introduced to promote high animal welfare standards and increased protection for animals in homes, farms and the wild?
Animal Welfare Standards — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Agriculture
Victoria Mary Boswell Prentis (Conservative, Centre-right): I certainly agree with my hon. Friend that there is a great deal of interest across this House and, indeed, among our constituents in issues concerning animal welfare. The UK is a leader when it comes to matters of animal welfare, but there is always more that we can and will do.
Animal Welfare Standards — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Agriculture
Fiona Claire Bruce (Conservative, Centre-right): My family enjoys quality food bought directly from farms across my constituency, such as Ibbotsons in Sandbach, Glebe Farm in Astbury, Hall Farm shop in Alsager, the Cheshire Egg Co.’s dispenser at Pace’s farm and daily fresh Bidlea milk from Twemlow. What more can the Government do to help those and other rural businesses in my constituency to promote their high-quality local produce?
Animal Welfare Standards — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Agriculture
Victoria Mary Boswell Prentis (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend is right to highlight the delicious food—from lovely meat to the famous Cheshire cheese—that is undoubtedly available in her constituency. We are supporting initiatives to promote local produce, including through recent industry-led marketing campaigns. We will always champion our farmers and producers to grow more of our great British food.
Sustainable Fishing — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Agriculture
Victoria Mary Boswell Prentis (Conservative, Centre-right): The Fisheries Bill, which is currently in Committee and on which I will be spending the rest of the day, sets out a legally binding framework, including fisheries management plans, which will help to protect and recover stocks; to support a thriving, sustainable fishing industry; and, we hope, to safeguard the environment.
Sustainable Fishing — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Agriculture
John Robert Lamont (Conservative, Centre-right): Sustainability means that coastal communities around the UK, such as Eyemouth in my constituency, can continue to fish for generations to come. When renegotiating access to UK waters, how will the Minister ensure that all boats comply with our rules and that our marine life is protected from overfishing?
Sustainable Fishing — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Agriculture
Victoria Mary Boswell Prentis (Conservative, Centre-right): In future, all vessels, both from the UK and elsewhere, will be subject to licence conditions set by the UK sea fisheries authorities. The conditions will set out the areas that can be fished, species that can be caught and types of gear that can be used when fishing in UK waters. Marine enforcement officers from all the fisheries administrations have the powers to inspect vessels and ensure that they comply with our rules.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: International Affairs
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): As we approach the end of the transition period, DEFRA’s primary focus will be on putting in place all the necessary legislation for January, working with industry to ensure that we are ready for change, and putting in place the necessary capacity to enable us to deliver a smooth transition to becoming an independent country.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Transportation
Andrew Griffith (Conservative, Centre-right): What is my right hon. Friend’s Department doing ahead of the upcoming winter to improve the fluvial transport capacity of the Rivers Arun and Adur, which is of great concern to farmers in my constituency of Arundel and South Downs?
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Agriculture
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): We are already running our own reviews in those policy areas through the national food strategy, which is run by Henry Dimbleby. Indeed, the powers in the Agriculture Bill give us precisely the ability to support local projects.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Agriculture
James Oliver Wild (Conservative, Centre-right): Two weeks ago, on a farm in Gayton in my constituency, I saw the damage being caused to the sugar beet crop by yellow virus. Will Ministers look seriously at the request from British Sugar and growers across Norfolk and elsewhere to follow the French example of a temporary derogation in respect of neonicotinoid seed treatments, to allow the industry to tackle the immediate issue while working on longer-term solutions?
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Agriculture
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): The Government recognise that sugar beet growers face yield losses this year because of the difficulties in controlling aphids. We support the restrictions on neonicotinoids to protect pollinators, but we have always been clear that we remain open to applications for emergency authorisations under the current rules.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Agriculture
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): We are always open to recommendations, suggestions and proposals from people in all walks of life, whether they are on any type of formal committee or not. The point I was making was that we have our own national food strategy, which is itself running a large engagement process to engage people in many of these ideas. We will of course consider those ideas as we put together future policy.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Environment
Thomas William Randall (Conservative, Centre-right): One of the biggest issues that Gedling residents have written to me about since my election is the culling of badgers. I recently met representatives of the Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust to hear more about the issue and the vaccination programme it is running, with DEFRA funding. Although it is important to follow the science in the decision making, there are concerns that the cull will eradicate some badger populations. Could my right hon. Friend tell me what criteria were used to determine the next areas where the culling will take place and what the extent of it will be?
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Agriculture
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend raises an important point. In our response to the Godfrey review, we set out our approach to dealing with bovine tuberculosis in the next five years. In response to the specific question, we look at epidemiological assessments in individual areas to see where particular strains are present in both badgers and cattle, and that drives the decisions about where culling is necessary.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Law and Crime
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): As the Minister said earlier, we have a consultation out at the moment, and people will no doubt respond to it. But the evidence we have is that actually many of these countries do have laws in place and the issue is a failure to enforce those laws, and that is why we have consulted on that basis.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Agriculture
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): I fundamentally disagree with the point made by the hon. Gentleman. It was indeed against the interests of the fishing industry, right across the UK, to join the European Union and the common fisheries policy, which has meant that we have access to only half the fish in our own waters. Leaving the EU means that we can rectify that and get a fair deal for fishermen in every part of the UK, which is why the Scottish industry strongly supports the approach of the British Government.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Agriculture
George William Freeman (Conservative, Centre-right): Following the outbreak of covid among staff of Banham Poultry, in my constituency, more than three weeks ago, the company has had to shut down its plants, and slaughter or sell millions of pounds-worth of its chickens to competitors for pennies, without the compensation it would normally receive for culling in relation to animal health, incurring losses of about £2 million a week. The two family shareholders have made it clear that that is unsustainable without any signal of Government support or progress towards reopening. Given that the company received no help earlier in the year through covid interruption schemes or furloughing, because it was rightly deemed a strategic food business, and has had no compensation for culling, can my right hon. Friend give some signal today, before the company’s emergency general meeting tomorrow, that the talks with Government in the past fortnight will lead to some financial support, to avoid the loss of an historic business and local economic devastation?
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Agriculture
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank my hon. Friend for that question. I had a meeting with my officials yesterday to discuss the case. We understand the difficulties that Banham Poultry is facing, and I know that our officials are in constant dialogue with the company, as are officials in other Departments, including Public Health England and the Treasury.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Environment
Charles George Eustice (Conservative, Centre-right): The WWF report is a wake-up call for everybody around the world. At the heart of every piece of policy in DEFRA is the intention to build back nature, including through our agriculture policy, where we are encouraging sustainable agriculture; through the new targets and governance framework in the Environment Bill; through our approach to sustainable fisheries; and through our work on due diligence in the supply chain. This is a crucial time, and the UK is a world leader here. We have COP26 and the convention on biodiversity, which we will be involved with next year, and we will be championing the environment in all those international forums.
House of Lords: Relocation — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Government Operations
Damian Patrick George Hinds (Conservative, Centre-right): I think the hon. Lady might have inferred something from my answer that was not actually there. To be absolutely clear, the sponsor body of the restoration and renewal programme works within the remit provided by Parliament and is currently conducting a review, looking at a range of options to make sure that we get continued, uninterrupted and sound operation of this place and secure value for money for the British public.
Electoral Commission: Independence — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Government Operations
Peter William Bone (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank the hon. Member for that response, but will he tell me whether he agrees with the eminent QC, Timothy Straker, that the Electoral Commission has made "gross errors"; that it "always has its own interest to protect"; that in legal terms, it had committed "a gross error which would not have been committed by a first year law student"; and that it should be stripped of its existing enforcement powers? Or does he just agree with me that it is time to scrap the Electoral Commission?
Covid-19: Financial Support — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Social Welfare
Luke Morgan Evans (Conservative, Centre-right): I am grateful to my hon. Friend for that answer, because financial difficulty is a really difficult problem. I was lucky enough to visit St John’s in Hinckley, at the request of the Rev. Gary Weston, where he showed me their food bank and the food parcels that they deliver to provide support locally. One of the questions that he wanted me to ask today was about better joining up with local government and raising awareness of what churches can do, because they can respond very quickly to provide support for local people in need. What steps is my hon. Friend taking to ensure that that can happen?
Overseas Aid and Development — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: International Affairs
Andrew Edmund Armstrong Selous (Conservative, Centre-right): The pandemic has worsened poverty and hunger in many developing countries. In response, the Archbishop of Canterbury has launched the Together In Unity Appeal to help vulnerable communities across the Anglican communion. The Church is in regular contact with Ministers and envoys to discuss a range of development and freedom of religion and belief issues.
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Technology
Matthew John David Hancock (Conservative, Centre-right): That is an extremely clear and strong position from the Chair of the Select Committee. Of course we are expanding the current technologies. We have a plan, when we are on track for it, to get to 500,000 tests a day by the end of next month, on the current technologies. On the next generation of technologies, I am not going to put a figure on it because it depends on the technologies coming off. The very nature of backing new technologies is that we do not know which ones are going to be verified. That is why we have so many that are being piloted and so many with whom we are working. We have tests right now in Porton Down being verified. We want this to go as fast as we can, and we want it to go as large as we reasonably can, but we do not put a specific figure on it—we put all our weight and support behind this project, which will have the positive benefits that my right hon. Friend so eloquently sets out.
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Macroeconomics
Andrew Griffith (Conservative, Centre-right): My right hon. Friend is a great supporter of the UK’s businesses and entrepreneurs. In his measures to tackle the virus, will he intercede with his public health colleagues to prioritise the businesses that generate economic growth so that when this is over we have an economy that is prosperous enough to cash the very generous cheques that we have written?
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Government Operations
Matthew John David Hancock (Conservative, Centre-right): Of course, West Brom is a distinct area and separate in its geography from central Birmingham. However, I caution my hon. Friend that we are seeing sharp rises in cases across many parts of the west midlands. We take these decisions on a localised basis; we do not take a whole local authority or area of regional geography in one go, but we do follow the data. I will make sure to keep in touch with my hon. Friend. She is a strong advocate for her local area, but sometimes action is necessary.
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Law and Crime
Matthew John David Hancock (Conservative, Centre-right): I was in contact with the Mayor of Greater Manchester this morning on the question of what we do in Greater Manchester. The national measures that were announced yesterday will come into force in Greater Manchester, and it is important that people follow them. We took further action in Bolton. The case rate in Bolton was coming down well, but thankfully before we implemented the rule change to remove some of the restrictions, we were able to act and stop that relaxation from happening, and we then had to tighten the rules up. I am working closely with councils in Greater Manchester, and talking to the Mayor, and I will also take on board the hon. Gentleman’s views in ensuring that we get these measures right. The message to everyone in Greater Manchester is the same as it is across the country: follow the rules and follow the social distancing, because only by doing that can we get this under control.
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Education
Matthew John David Hancock (Conservative, Centre-right): We have strong protocols on the return to school. I am really glad about the success of the policy to get all schools back; it is one of the Government’s unsung successes over recent weeks, and is working effectively. The guidelines set out very clearly when testing is appropriate. Testing is appropriate for people who have symptoms. Close contacts of people who have symptoms need to self-isolate and not get a test unless they have symptoms because getting a test would not allow them to leave self-isolation anyway because of the risk of false negatives. That is why the policy is as it is. We have given each school 10 or more tests so that they can easily use them in an emergency, and that has been warmly welcomed by most schools.
Covid-19 Update — House of Commons, 2020-09-10
Topic: Education
Laura Rose Farris (Conservative, Centre-right): A successful return to school in west Berkshire has been matched with a reduction in the availability of testing. I have listened to my right hon. Friend this morning; if there is a reluctance to impose more stringent eligibility criteria, would he consider an order of priority based on, for example, working parents and teachers being able to access tests sooner?