argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Apprenticeship Levy — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Labor
Andrea Jacqueline Leadsom (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Gentleman will be aware that the apprenticeship levy is collected from Northern Ireland businesses, with Northern Ireland subsequently receiving a Barnett consequential of spending on apprenticeships in England, which is funded by the levy. Ensuring that apprenticeship policy in Northern Ireland is delivering for Northern Ireland businesses is just one of a number for reasons why it is so essential that devolved government in Northern Ireland is restored.
Apprenticeship Levy — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Labor
Anne Frances Milton (Conservative, Centre-right): In Guildford, 97% of businesses are small businesses. What progress have the Government made on ensuring that they can use the 25% transfer from levy employers to build the skilled workforce that we desperately need in this country?
Apprenticeship Levy — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Education
Andrea Jacqueline Leadsom (Conservative, Centre-right): I pay tribute to my right hon. Friend for her superb work as Minister of State for Skills over the past few years. Under her watch, the importance of technical education has been raised substantially. She will be aware that sectors in all parts of the economy are now creating apprenticeship programmes, from cyber-security to offshore wind, and more than 61% of starts are now on high-quality industry design standards.
Apprenticeship Levy — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Education
Andrea Jacqueline Leadsom (Conservative, Centre-right): The right hon. Gentleman will be aware that in the 2018-19 academic year, despite an overall fall, nearly 60,000 people started higher-level apprenticeships, up nearly 43% on the year before the levy was introduced. It is important that the Government continue to talk to business about how to make use of this, but we are very pleased with progress.
Apprenticeship Levy — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Labor
George Iain Duncan Smith (Conservative, Centre-right): A recent report by the Centre for Social Justice showed that in the UK, of those who start entry- level work, only 15%—15%—will ever progress beyond it in their whole life. That is an indictment of the UK under different Governments. Beyond apprenticeships, what plans does my right hon. Friend have to find ways to encourage businesses to do on-the-job training, so that those people can move on and increase their salaries?
Apprenticeship Levy — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Education
Andrea Jacqueline Leadsom (Conservative, Centre-right): My right hon. Friend is right to raise the much bigger challenge of how to get young people not only into an apprenticeship but past it, enabling their skills to develop. We are doing that in a number of different ways. The Government continue to speak with businesses and monitor the impact of the apprenticeship levy on the performance of young people. We are doing a lot to promote start-up businesses for young people through the British Business Bank, but we continue to need to seek ways to ensure that no young person is left behind.
Executive Pay — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Government Operations
Kelly Jane Tolhurst (Conservative, Centre-right): Average FTSE 100 CEO pay more than quadrupled from £1 million in 1998 to £4.5 million in 2012. Since then, the median average has fallen by £1.04 million. We have recently implemented a number of reforms to make further improvements to executive pay transparency and accountability through vehicles such as the UK corporate governance code.
Executive Pay — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Government Operations
Steven John Baker (Conservative, Centre-right): Does my hon. Friend agree that the right way to control executive pay is to increase democratic control of capital, not by increasing the powers of the state but by dramatically improving the rights of shareholders?
Executive Pay — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Government Operations
Kelly Jane Tolhurst (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank my right hon. Friend for raising this. Part of the reforms in January was to make organisations report back on the effect of share price growth on executive pay outcomes. We published some evidence before the summer from a review undertaken on share buy-backs, and there was no clear evidence to suggest that they did have a perverse outcome.
High Speed 2 — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Transportation
Questions: What recent discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Transport on the potential benefits of High Speed 2 to businesses in the north.
Nadhim Zahawi (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Lady mentions the CBI. Both the Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, and the Mayor of Birmingham, Andy Street, who sits on the panel conducting the review, have said it is important that we kick the tyres on value for money, but it is also important to make such representations to ensure that the committee gets a full view of the business benefits of HS2.
High Speed 2 — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Transportation
Questions: What recent discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Transport on the potential benefits of High Speed 2 to businesses in the north.
Philip Andrew Davies (Conservative, Centre-right): May I urge the Minister to ignore the siren voice opposite? Most people in the north accept that HS2 is a catastrophic waste of money— a huge white elephant that is destroying the environment and the countryside and will chiefly benefit London, hence why it started out in London in the first place. May I therefore urge him to tell the Secretary of State for Transport to scrap HS2 and crack on with the thing that will really benefit the northern economy—Northern Powerhouse Rail or HS3—connecting the north, which is what we need to benefit the north’s economy.
High Speed 2 — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Transportation
Questions: What recent discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Transport on the potential benefits of High Speed 2 to businesses in the north.
Nadhim Zahawi (Conservative, Centre-right): I do not think there is any danger of that, Mr Speaker My hon. Friend raises an important point, which is why the Prime Minister has pledged to fund the Leeds to Manchester route and has accelerated those plans with a deal in the autumn of 2019, with billions of pounds going into Northern Powerhouse Rail, and has of course set up Transport for the North.
High Speed 2 — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Transportation
Questions: What recent discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Transport on the potential benefits of High Speed 2 to businesses in the north.
Nadhim Zahawi (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Gentleman makes a powerful point, although his colleague, the hon. Member for Manchester Central (Lucy Powell), was shaking her head, so there is clearly division on the benefits of HS2. That is why we have an independent review to tell us which way we should proceed.
High Speed 2 — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Transportation
Questions: What recent discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Transport on the potential benefits of High Speed 2 to businesses in the north.
Martin John Vickers (Conservative, Centre-right): One of the businesses in northern Lincolnshire that will be a crucial part of the supply chain for HS2 is British Steel in Scunthorpe. I urge the Minister, when he is in discussion with the Department for Transport, to consider the effect on the supply chain and the impact on local economies.
Hydraulic Fracturing — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Energy
Kwasi Alfred Addo Kwarteng (Conservative, Centre-right): I pay tribute to my hon. Friend’s campaign on this fracking issue. We are all concerned about the impact of recent seismic events in Lancashire. My hon Friend knows that the Government have been clear that they will support the exploration of our shale gas resources only in a safe and sustainable way. The Oil and Gas Authority is undertaking an analysis of the data from Cuadrilla’s operations and we will set out our future approach as soon as we have considered that report.
Hydraulic Fracturing — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Energy
Kwasi Alfred Addo Kwarteng (Conservative, Centre-right): As I said to my hon. Friend the Member for North East Derbyshire (Lee Rowley), we will consider the Oil and Gas Authority’s report and we will look at the evidence before we reach a final decision on the issue.
Hydraulic Fracturing — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Government Operations
Kwasi Alfred Addo Kwarteng (Conservative, Centre-right): As I have said on three occasions now, we will consider the OGA report, and we will look at the evidence. We are very mindful of what local communities are saying and we will set out our future direction shortly.
Workplace Access Rights — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Labor
Kelly Jane Tolhurst (Conservative, Centre-right): All workers in the UK have the right to join a union and to participate in union activities. That right is protected under trade union law, and 23% of UK employees are union members. That is higher than some European countries, including France and Germany, and it demonstrates that union rights to recruit and organise through individual members and officials are sufficient.
Workplace Access Rights — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Labor
Kelly Jane Tolhurst (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank the hon. Gentleman for his question. It is the right of unions and employers to come to an agreement about representation in the workplace. The Central Arbitration Committee is available if that is refused. With regard to workers’ rights, the good work plan represents the biggest reform of workers’ rights in 20 years. We are determined to continue on that path, because workers’ rights are important to this Government.
Workplace Access Rights — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Labor
Questions: I believe that my constituents’ workplace rights should keep step with those of citizens across the EU, but on reading the WAB, or European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Bill, last night I see that my constituents will have to wait on Tory Ministers deciding to replicate progressive EU change. I believe that back in 2010 the Secretary of State said her vision was for small firms to give“no minimum wage, no maternity or paternity rights, no unfair dismissal rights, no pension rights”.—[Official Report, 10 May 2012; Vol. 545, c. 209.]Is it therefore not the case that so-called progressive MPs who support the Withdrawal Agreement Bill will never be forgiven for putting the rights of workers into the hands of Thatcherites?
Kelly Jane Tolhurst (Conservative, Centre-right): It will come as no surprise that I completely disagree with the hon. and learned Lady. The Prime Minister has been clear: not only will we maintain workers’ rights, but we will enhance them. Even in my role as a Minister over the past 12 years, everything has been focused on ensuring we are ahead of the European Union. We are committed. We have never, ever, not once ever put forward a position where we have shown we will row back on workers’ rights.
Workplace Access Rights — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Labor
Questions: I believe that my constituents’ workplace rights should keep step with those of citizens across the EU, but on reading the WAB, or European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Bill, last night I see that my constituents will have to wait on Tory Ministers deciding to replicate progressive EU change. I believe that back in 2010 the Secretary of State said her vision was for small firms to give“no minimum wage, no maternity or paternity rights, no unfair dismissal rights, no pension rights”.—[Official Report, 10 May 2012; Vol. 545, c. 209.]Is it therefore not the case that so-called progressive MPs who support the Withdrawal Agreement Bill will never be forgiven for putting the rights of workers into the hands of Thatcherites?
Kelly Jane Tolhurst (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Lady makes allegations about a particular organisation. She is welcome to write to me further about those allegations, but I remind her that sufficient workplace laws are in place. We have the Health and Safety Executive, for example. If she has evidence of certain employers breaking the law, I would expect it to be passed on to the relevant agencies. As I outlined, our Prime Minister is committed to ensuring that we keep step with the European Union and go further. I believe the actions the Government have taken over recent months prove that.
Photovoltaic and Battery Storage Systems: VAT — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Energy
Questions: What assessment her Department has made of the potential effect of changes to VAT for solar on the uptake of photovoltaic and battery storage systems.
Kwasi Alfred Addo Kwarteng (Conservative, Centre-right): I did suggest that the VAT increase was part of EU legislation, and that is something we can amend, if we wish to do so, after we have left the EU. Solar is a UK success story. I will not take any lessons from the Labour party about the success of solar: 99% of our solar-generating capacity and over 1 million installations have been deployed since 2010, since the Government took office. This is something that we are proud of, and it will obviously be part of our energy mix as we seek to hit the target of zero carbon emissions in 2050.
Photovoltaic and Battery Storage Systems: VAT — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Energy
Questions: What assessment her Department has made of the potential effect of changes to VAT for solar on the uptake of photovoltaic and battery storage systems.
Kevin Paul Hollinrake (Conservative, Centre-right): Even given the VAT situation, solar and wind together with battery storage on commercial buildings is pretty much viable without public subsidy. Is not now the right time for a widespread deployment on every public building, including every school, hospital and prison?
Photovoltaic and Battery Storage Systems: VAT — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Energy
Questions: What assessment her Department has made of the potential effect of changes to VAT for solar on the uptake of photovoltaic and battery storage systems.
Kwasi Alfred Addo Kwarteng (Conservative, Centre-right): I very much appreciate the hon. Gentleman’s prepared remarks, but he does not seem to be living in the real world. We have delivered on offshore wind, which he mentioned. The price has fallen by two thirds—that is a Government success and we are going to pursue that sort of success to meet the net zero carbon target.
Business Establishment: Women — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Education
Andrea Jacqueline Leadsom (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend is quite right. We need to go further in addressing education, and that is why one initiative in the Rose review specifically addressed the roll-out of enterprise education in schools and colleges to help in particular with the skills women need for business success at an earlier age. BEIS has also launched the Longitude Explorer prize, which is aimed specifically at 11 to 16-year-olds, to encourage innovative problem solving in our young entrepreneurs.
Business Establishment: Women — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: International Affairs
Andrea Jacqueline Leadsom (Conservative, Centre-right): I am sorry that the hon. Lady seeks to lean into the scaremongering. The statutory instrument has a very limited direct policy impact and will not impose additional restrictions on EU nationals or EU-based businesses or on the nationals and businesses of countries with associated agreements after we have left the EU. It is very important that we all take great care not to scaremonger and try to make people think that things are the case that are simply not the case.
Offshore Wind Industry — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Energy
Kwasi Alfred Addo Kwarteng (Conservative, Centre-right): As a result of the Government’s support, the UK is a world leader in offshore wind and a leader in tackling climate change. The third contracts for difference auction in 2019 delivered 5.5 GW of new offshore wind capacity, and the price was £39 per megawatt-hour, which was two thirds less than just four years ago. Our sector deal also paves the way to increase exports fivefold to £2.6 billion a year by 2030.
Offshore Wind Industry — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Energy
James Roger Cartlidge (Conservative, Centre-right): In East Anglia, we want to be champions of clean growth and are very proud that off our coast we are generating 52% of this country’s offshore wind output, but we want to go much further. Can my right hon. Friend assure me that the national grid will be able to keep pace and that we will support technology such as battery storage that will enable us to make the most of our natural asset?
Offshore Wind Industry — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Energy
Kwasi Alfred Addo Kwarteng (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend can rest assured that the Government continue to upgrade and invest in the electricity system to ensure that it can deliver additional generation. Of course, battery storage technology and other forms of storage are at the centre of any strategy to reach the net zero carbon target.
Offshore Wind Industry — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Energy
Gregory William Hands (Conservative, Centre-right): The offshore wind sector has been one of the Government’s biggest success stories, with the delivery of the world’s largest capacity. When I was at the Department for International Trade, we also made it a priority to be able to export that capability. Could the Minister tell us a bit about the work that BEIS is doing with the DIT to continue that work so that we also deliver real economic benefits for our country’s exporters?
Offshore Wind Industry — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Foreign Trade
Kwasi Alfred Addo Kwarteng (Conservative, Centre-right): I pay tribute to my right hon. Friend, who spent two years in the Department for International Trade and was an excellent Minister. He has driven a great deal of progress in this area. As he will know, increasing competitiveness and the capability of our supply chain are key to increasing our exporting power, and, through the offshore wind sector deal, the sector will invest up to £250 million for that purpose. I continue to work with my right hon. Friend’s former Department to identify opportunities, and I regularly meet the Under-Secretary of State for International Trade, my hon. Friend the Member for Beverley and Holderness (Graham Stuart), in his capacity as Minister for investment.
Offshore Wind Industry — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Labor
Kwasi Alfred Addo Kwarteng (Conservative, Centre-right): The Government will absolutely commit themselves to supporting new jobs in the sector. Because of allocation round 3, the contracts for difference auction, we are envisaging 400,000 new jobs in the immediate future, in the next few years. This is something at which the Government are actually succeeding and on which they are working.
Offshore Wind Industry — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Energy
Kwasi Alfred Addo Kwarteng (Conservative, Centre-right): I welcome the hon. Gentleman’s enthusiasm and passion for this technology, but it is wrong to suggest that the CfD auction was a failure, or that it somehow constituted a defeat. In fact, it was extremely successful. As I have said, the price was £39 per megawatt-hour, two thirds lower than the 2015 price of £115. Obviously we are looking at interconnectors, which will be part of the solution to the issue of net zero carbon.
Offshore Wind Industry — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Energy
Sarah Louise Newton (Conservative, Centre-right): There is huge potential for low-cost, low-carbon electricity generation from floating wind in the Celtic sea. Will my right hon. Friend accept an invitation to pay a visit on 19 November and find out about this exciting opportunity?
Offshore Wind Industry — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Energy
Kwasi Alfred Addo Kwarteng (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Lady is right to point to the advantages of hydrogen, but, as she will understand, the issue with electrolysis is that it is currently very expensive, so the "green" hydrogen to which she has referred is something that we are continuing to develop.
Hydro-electric Power Generation — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Energy
Kwasi Alfred Addo Kwarteng (Conservative, Centre-right): A number of hydro projects are currently in receipt of support through the feed-in tariff and renewables obligation schemes. As my hon. Friend will know, from 2020 small-scale hydro-electric projects will also be eligible for the smart export guarantee, which allows people to resell excess capacity to the grid.
Hydro-electric Power Generation — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Energy
William Peter Wragg (Conservative, Centre-right): My right hon. Friend will be aware of the failure of Solarplicity during the summer. Many renewable energy companies, including Stockport Hydro in my constituency, are significantly out of pocket. Will my right hon. Friend meet me to discuss the problem, and will he urge Ofgem to step in and cover the debts that are owed to Solarplicity?
Hydro-electric Power Generation — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Energy
Kwasi Alfred Addo Kwarteng (Conservative, Centre-right): Absolutely. The hon. Gentleman raises an important point: the success with offshore wind did not come out of a clear blue sky. It evolved and depended on huge amounts of investment and development over many decades. So I am very happy to engage with the hon. Gentleman and the Welsh Government on this.
New Mothers: Workplace — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Labor
Kelly Jane Tolhurst (Conservative, Centre-right): The Government are wholly committed to women’s participation in the workforce, including by supporting new mothers to return to, and thrive in, work. That is why we recently consulted on a broad range of proposals to help families to balance their work and home commitments. We have also announced our intention to extend redundancy protection to new mothers returning to work.
New Mothers: Workplace — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Social Welfare
Kelly Jane Tolhurst (Conservative, Centre-right): First, I pay tribute to my hon. Friend and Members across the House who participated in Baby Loss Awareness Week and the emotional debate in the House. The Government have committed to introducing parental bereavement leave and pay, which will apply to parents who lose a child under the age of 18, including parents with stillbirth. We plan to lay the regulations to implement the policy in January, ready to come into force on 6 April. That will support new mothers facing these tragic and difficult circumstances.
Electric Vehicle Technology — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Energy
Mark Julian Francis Pawsey (Conservative, Centre-right): I do not know whether you have had the opportunity to make a journey in one of the new electric London taxis, Mr Speaker, which are manufactured in my Rugby constituency by the London Electric Vehicle Company and which often provide people with their first experience of an electric vehicle. The company has just recorded its best ever sales month, with 352 taxis sold, and the fleet is improving the carbon footprint in our cities by preventing 6,800 tonnes of CO2 from entering the atmosphere. What further can we do to improve the switch to electric?
Electric Vehicle Technology — House of Commons, 2019-10-22
Topic: Transportation
Nadhim Zahawi (Conservative, Centre-right): I am very pleased to hear that the London Electric Vehicle Company had record sales in September. I spoke to the CEO recently and was very impressed with their capability. I understand their sales have grown month on month since April. They have capacity to produce 20,000 vehicles a year and his message to this House when I spoke to him was, "Let’s get Brexit done."