argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Agricultural Exports from Australia: Tariffs — House of Commons, 2021-05-27
Topic: Agriculture
Patricia Gibson (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): Farmers in Scotland and across the UK fear this trade deal with Australia could put them out of businesses and flood our supermarkets shelves with inferior-quality products. I know that the Minister rejects that and does not recognise those fears as being valid, so can he explain why it seems that our farmers and consumers simply do not understand how fabulous this deal is, or could it be that the Government are being disingenuous about the impact this deal will have on our farmers and our food?
Agricultural Exports from Australia: Tariffs — House of Commons, 2021-05-27
Topic: Environment
Deidre Leanne Brock (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): Does the Minister appreciate that doing this deal with Australia would wreck the UK’s reputation on environmental issues, since Australia has the highest rate of deforestation in the OECD, driven by the livestock industry, and Australian agriculture uses 71 highly hazardous substances that are banned in the UK, including neonicotinoids and hormone injections for beef? Does he think losing that reputation is a price worth paying for this trade deal?
Ferry Services: Scotland to Europe — House of Commons, 2021-09-08
Topic: Transportation
Questions: What recent discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the potential merits of creating direct ferry services from Scotland to mainland Europe. [R]
Douglas Chapman (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): I endorse the comments of the Secretary of State on the Olympic and Paralympic teams, and the tartan army result last night; I am absolutely delighted with second place in the group at the moment, but let us go on to be first and get qualification The Secretary of State will be aware of recent dismal export figures in the wake of Brexit, the need to reduce lorry miles to help us get to net zero and the current HGV driver crisis that make up the hat-trick of events that would seem to make the need for a ferry service from Scotland to mainland Europe almost self-evident. However, there are barriers, including the commitment of Border Force to provide the resources and personnel to support that new route. Next week, we celebrate London International Shipping Week—
Misuse of Drugs Act and Health Outcomes — House of Commons, 2021-09-08
Topic: Law and Crime
Mhairi Black (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): The Minister says that there is no consensus as to drug consumption rooms, but, as has already been said, every country that has trialled safe consumption rooms has a positive story to tell about them. The other thing that he failed to mention is that the legislation that makes drug use a crime often traps vulnerable people in a vicious cycle of poverty and crime. With that in mind, will this Government finally commit to reviewing the 50-year-old legislation that is the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971?
Misuse of Drugs Act and Health Outcomes — House of Commons, 2021-09-08
Topic: Law and Crime
Mhairi Black (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): In what world do you get to claim to be taking an issue seriously while in the same breath commit to change absolutely nothing? If the logical arguments will not convince, then maybe the financial ones will. Crimes linked to drugs in Scotland cost £750 million a year to investigate and prosecute. Experts tell us that that money could be better spent. If the experts, the Scottish Government and even the Scottish Conservatives can now agree that health needs to be the main approach, why not the Minister?
Strength of the Union — House of Commons, 2021-09-08
Topic: Energy
Stephen Mark Flynn (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): The helping hand of the Union has left Scotland with no oil fund. It sees our renewables projects pay the highest grid charging levies in the entirety of Europe. In 2015, we saw the scrapping of plans for a carbon capture and underground storage plant in Peterhead, so I am simply seeking reassurance from the Secretary of State that the Acorn project will be one of two clusters to receive backing from his Government next month.
Strength of the Union — House of Commons, 2021-09-08
Topic: International Affairs
Patrick John Grady (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): How is the Union strengthened by the increasingly divergent franchises on these islands? Scotland’s Parliament was elected in May with an electorate including 16 and 17-year-olds, refugees and EU nationals, while his Government’s Trumpian Elections Bill wants to suppress and restrict voter turnout. Surely that only increases the legitimacy and mandate of the Scottish Parliament and the Scottish Government, and makes this place even more detached from voters in Scotland.
Strength of the Union — House of Commons, 2021-09-08
Topic: International Affairs
Thomas Sheppard (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): We know that for the past two years, the Government have been spending taxpayers’ money researching public opinion in Scotland on the state of the Union. For two years, I have been trying to get answers as to what that research says. For two years, the Cabinet Office has refused, including appealing to the court of law and bringing in outside consultants to fund its case. Is it not time, if the Secretary of State believes so much that the Union is such a wonderful thing, for him to tell us what he has found out about what Scottish people think about the state of the Union and publish this research?
Free Trade Agreements: Opportunities for Scotland — House of Commons, 2021-09-08
Topic: Foreign Trade
Alan Brown (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): With all these free trade deals, I wonder whether the Minister can detail what the losses are to the seafood industry through Brexit, and what compensation it has received through the UK Government. What are the current losses to the hospitality industry because it cannot access EU labour, and what are the total losses to the Scottish Food and Drink Federation because of shortages caused by the HGV lorry driver crisis?
Engagements — House of Commons, 2021-09-08
Topic: Macroeconomics
Questions: Will my right hon. Friend offer me an answer for my constituents of the future, as they sit around a tepid radiator powered by an inefficient and expensive air source heating unit, worrying about the payments on the electric car that they did not want either, while they watch the growing economies of the world going hell for leather building new gas and coal-powered stations? They will be asking me, “Why?” Will the Prime Minister please commit to solutions that are technologically possible to reduce Britain’s CO2, rather than uncosted commitments that—I am sorry—we will be hearing a lot of at COP26?; Does my right hon. Friend agree that while the recent extension of the grace periods for the movement of goods between Great Britain and Northern Ireland is welcome, it does not yet amount to a permanent fix of the Northern Ireland protocol, which Lord Trimble suggests is inimical to the Belfast agreement? Will my right hon. Friend confirm that, in the continuing negotiations, the Government will draw the attention of the EU to the positive advantages of mutual enforcement, as advocated in the recent excellent paper by the Centre for Brexit Policy?
Ian Blackford (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): Yesterday, without consultation, the Prime Minister announced plans to impose a regressive Tory poll tax on millions of Scottish workers. The Joseph Rowntree Foundation estimates that around 2 million families on low incomes will now pay an average of an extra £100 a year because of the Prime Minister’s tax hike. Yet again, the Tories are fleecing Scottish families, hitting low and middle-income workers and penalising the young. A former Tory Work and Pensions Secretary called it a "sham". A former Tory Chancellor has said this is the poor subsidising the rich. A former Tory Prime Minister has called this "regressive". Prime Minister, is it not the case that this Tory tax hike is once again balancing the books on the backs of the poor and the young?
Engagements — House of Commons, 2021-09-08
Topic: Macroeconomics
Questions: Will my right hon. Friend offer me an answer for my constituents of the future, as they sit around a tepid radiator powered by an inefficient and expensive air source heating unit, worrying about the payments on the electric car that they did not want either, while they watch the growing economies of the world going hell for leather building new gas and coal-powered stations? They will be asking me, “Why?” Will the Prime Minister please commit to solutions that are technologically possible to reduce Britain’s CO2, rather than uncosted commitments that—I am sorry—we will be hearing a lot of at COP26?; Does my right hon. Friend agree that while the recent extension of the grace periods for the movement of goods between Great Britain and Northern Ireland is welcome, it does not yet amount to a permanent fix of the Northern Ireland protocol, which Lord Trimble suggests is inimical to the Belfast agreement? Will my right hon. Friend confirm that, in the continuing negotiations, the Government will draw the attention of the EU to the positive advantages of mutual enforcement, as advocated in the recent excellent paper by the Centre for Brexit Policy?
Ian Blackford (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): That was no answer to the question, because the facts are that this is a tax hike on the poor and on the young. You should be ashamed of yourself, Prime Minister We now know the economic direction of this toxic Tory Government: we are going to see furlough scrapped, universal credit cut and more tax hikes for the low-paid. Let us be in no doubt: this is the return of the Tories’ austerity agenda. It is austerity 2.0. On this Prime Minister’s watch, the United Kingdom now has the worst levels of poverty and inequality anywhere in north-west Europe, and in-work poverty has risen to record levels this century. More Tory austerity cuts will make this even worse Scotland deserves better. There is clearly no chance of a fair covid recovery under this Prime Minister and under this Westminster Government. Is it not the case that the only way to protect Scotland from Tory cuts and the regressive tax hikes is for it to become an independent country, with the full powers needed to build a fair, strong and equal recovery for the people of Scotland?
Health and Social Care Levy — House of Commons, 2021-09-08
Topic: Macroeconomics
Peter Grant (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): Given the right hon. Gentleman’s experience on the Treasury Committee, does he not agree that a tax hike of this scale could—if it was necessary—be much more fairly and equitably carried out if the tax burden was spread across a number of different taxes, rather than 100% of the burden being landed on one single, narrowly based tax?
Health and Social Care Levy — House of Commons, 2021-09-08
Topic: Social Welfare
Alison Emily Thewliss (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): I would like to start by giving the UK Government some credit: they are absolute masters of illusion and deflection. Trying to get them to simply answer a question is like pinning jelly to a wall. Their Ministers are astonishingly unperturbed by going out to argue for policies that entirely contradict the cast-iron promises they made when they stood for election. We on the Scottish National party Benches are clear that raising national insurance is a blunt tool to fund social care, likely to disproportionately hit young people and lower earners. Our SNP amendment (a) would have forced the UK Tory Government to come clean on the distributional impact of this policy We would love to be able to amend the motion more broadly, but as the hon. Member for Rhondda (Chris Bryant) pointed out, we have limitations on our ability to do so this afternoon, which is hugely frustrating. Our amendment therefore covers the impact by age, because we know that young people will be affected worst; by income, because we know that national insurance is regressive and will hammer lower earners; by wealth, because those with unearned incomes stand to be the big winners and the key political motive here appears to be for the Tories to bail out their well-heeled voters against losing their inheritance; and by place of residence, because this is a UK tax for an English policy crisis and, within England, the Resolution Foundation is clear that this policy will benefit the south-east the most. It is of no surprise to me that the UK Tory Government’s national insurance hike and the "back of a fag packet" plan announced yesterday are already drawing criticism from all sides—from The Daily Telegraph, the Daily Mirror, the Cabinet and Back Benchers.
Health and Social Care Levy — House of Commons, 2021-09-08
Topic: Macroeconomics
Joanna Catherine Cherry (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): My hon. Friend is making a number of very important points. An anonymous member of the Cabinet is quoted in The Daily Telegraph as being very critical of this policy: "If you get all your income from investments and property you don’t pay a penny but if you work your guts out for minimum wage you get clobbered." Can my hon. Friend hazard a guess as to what the Tories have against taxing unearned income?
Health and Social Care Levy — House of Commons, 2021-09-08
Topic: Macroeconomics
Alison Emily Thewliss (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): I would be very curious to know why that is. I was going to read out that very quote, because even three former Conservative leaders, including a former Prime Minister and three more former Chancellors, have spoken out against this move. To complete the quote that my hon. and learned Friend mentioned, this person, an anonymous member of the Conservative party, said: "Putting up National Insurance would be morally, economically and politically wrong." They went on to say: "After all that’s happened in the last 18 months they can’t seriously be thinking about a tax raid on supermarket workers and nurses so the children of Surrey homeowners can receive bigger inheritances." Well, yes indeed they are.
Health and Social Care Levy — House of Commons, 2021-09-08
Topic: Social Welfare
Philippa Whitford (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): Is it not the case that the talk is about making life better for social care staff, but actually, they are exactly the people who will lose £1,000 a year in the universal credit cut and will now face this extra cost?
Health and Social Care Levy — House of Commons, 2021-09-08
Topic: Macroeconomics
Alison Emily Thewliss (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): My hon. Friend is absolutely right. They are the people who can least afford it and who have worked the hardest through this pandemic, who this Government should be thanking, not taxing We are being asked to vote today on measures that the Institute for Fiscal Studies has described as "better than doing nothing", which is about as charitable an analysis as is possible of this policy.
Health and Social Care Levy — House of Commons, 2021-09-08
Topic: Social Welfare
Alison Emily Thewliss (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): What the hon. Gentleman fails to understand is that we are starting from very different points. He does not acknowledge that, and he does not understand it. The response from equality and anti-poverty groups has been absolutely damning. The Women’s Budget Group has said: "We believe there is a fairer way to fund social care. This is because, as they currently stand NICs are more regressive than income tax—with a lower threshold at which payments start, and a higher rate threshold beyond which employees pay a lower rate." The Resolution Foundation has described the policy as "generationally unfair". Paul Johnson of the IFS has said: "Remains the case pensioners will pay next to nothing for this social care package—overwhelmingly to be paid by working age employees".
Health and Social Care Levy — House of Commons, 2021-09-08
Topic: Social Welfare
Alison Emily Thewliss (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): The hon. Gentleman makes an excellent point. For young people who have perhaps struggled through this year, who have graduated and who are going out into the world of work, it is a real hammer blow to their prospects Many families are already facing a historic £1,040 cut to their annual incomes and are staring down the barrel of impending cuts to universal credit and working tax credit. The Joseph Rowntree Foundation has described the new levy as adding "insult to injury". The New Economics Foundation has calculated that 2.5 million working households will be affected by the £20 a week cut to universal credit and the increase in national insurance. On average, they will lose out by £1,290 in the next financial year. Working households are doing their very best to put food on the table and support their children, and this cruel UK Tory Government caw the legs from under them.
Health and Social Care Levy — House of Commons, 2021-09-08
Topic: Macroeconomics
Alison Emily Thewliss (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): I have seen a different analysis from the New Economics Foundation; I urge the hon. Gentleman to look at it, because it gives a very different picture from the one that the Government are presenting today, which is why we need more analysis of the policy before the Government go forward with it The policy will also have an impact on our recovery from the pandemic. Businesses, which have weathered such a challenging year, have spoken out against it in the strongest terms. The Federation of Small Businesses has called the national insurance hike "anti-job, anti-small business, anti-start up", pointing out that the increase to national insurance will "stifle recruitment, investment and efforts to upskill and improve productivity in the years ahead."
Health and Social Care Levy — House of Commons, 2021-09-08
Topic: Macroeconomics
Alison Emily Thewliss (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): The hon. Lady is absolutely correct. The Government have learned nothing from the austerity that caused so much damage with the last crash. They are about to repeat their mistakes, and those on the lowest incomes will be hammered most, again The Institute of Directors has called the hike "political opportunism" and has highlighted the tax on dividends, which will hit sole traders and small company directors, many of whom were completely and unjustifiably excluded from UK Government support during the pandemic. It really does rub salt in the wounds.
Health and Social Care Levy — House of Commons, 2021-09-08
Topic: Macroeconomics
Alison Emily Thewliss (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): The hon. Gentleman has done more talking than listening in this place. It would be useful if he sat down The spending cuts will have an impact on Barnett consequentials. It would be just like this UK Tory Government to appear to give with one hand while picking Scotland’s pockets with the other. A new Tory poll tax that punishes those on the lowest incomes is being forced upon Scotland by a Government we did not vote for.
Health and Social Care Levy — House of Commons, 2021-09-08
Topic: Social Welfare
Philippa Whitford (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): Scotland already spends 43% more per head on social care, which allows us to be the only nation that delivers free personal care and has extended it to people under 65. That was why we raised the extra 1p on tax, for which Scots are already paying and from which they are already gaining. That should be controlled by the Scottish Parliament.
Health and Social Care Levy — House of Commons, 2021-09-08
Topic: Social Welfare
Alison Emily Thewliss (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): My hon. Friend speaks the absolute truth. There is a huge contrast between what the Government propose and what is already being delivered in Scotland Some have said, "What’s your alternative?" Well, fixing England’s social care crisis is not for the SNP to decide, quite frankly. Having heard evidence when I sat on the Select Committee on Communities and Local Government some years ago, I know that successive UK Governments have failed to act and have ignored the evidence as difficulties mounted. Now the Prime Minister has come to this House in haste, shamelessly using covid as cover.
Health and Social Care Levy — House of Commons, 2021-09-08
Topic: Social Welfare
Peter Grant (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): On the subject of cases being demolished, one of the cases that the right hon. Gentleman’s colleagues have made great deal of play of today is that of the fictional Yusuf in the Government’s own document. According to the Government, Yusuf’s care home costs are £700 a week. They claim that under the current system they would have had to spend £293,000 before they reached the current cap. The Minister will be aware—I hope he can count—that in order to spend £293,000 at £700 a week—
Universal Credit: Removal of Uplift — House of Commons, 2021-09-13
Topic: Social Welfare
David Melvyn Linden (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): People were already struggling to get by after an eye-watering £37 billion of Tory cuts to social security between 2010 and 2019, and they now face the biggest overnight cut to the basic rate of social security since the foundation of the modern welfare state 70 years ago. Given that the Secretary of State is her Department’s voice around the Cabinet table, can she confirm with a simple yes or no whether she is and has been lobbying the Treasury to stop these cuts?
Support for Older Jobseekers — House of Commons, 2021-09-13
Topic: Transportation
Alan Brown (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): For years I have tried to point out that one reason for HGV driver shortages is that people cannot afford the cost of £3,000 to £4,000 to do the training and sit the tests. Is it time for the Government to consider some sort of grant scheme, so that people get their training paid for them, leading to a welfare saving in the long run? It is win-win, so when will the Government step up and do it?
Universal Credit: Adequacy — House of Commons, 2021-09-13
Topic: Social Welfare
Richard Gordon Thomson (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): If the UK Government plough ahead with their planned cut to universal credit, it will result in one in three families with children in Scotland losing over £1,000 overnight and plunge 20,000 children into poverty. Does the Minister understand why so many people in Scotland think that it is the uplift that should stay and the Government snatching away that financial lifeline that should go instead?
Universal Credit: Adequacy — House of Commons, 2021-09-13
Topic: Social Welfare
Martyn Day (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): I wonder whether the Ministers can tell us whether any of them actually listened to the evidence of the Work and Pensions Committee last week about hard-pressed families and the effect that universal credit was having on them. If they did, what would they say to their faces about taking £1,040 away from them?