argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Covid-19: International Language Schools — House of Commons, 2020-07-01
Topic: Education
Caroline Ansell (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank my hon. Friend for that intervention and I endorse his request. Such a move would make a difference Confidence in the junior market has collapsed. It represents 51% of those studying English in the UK, so the impact is catastrophic. It is almost certain that the Italian Government’s ban on school group travel, which is our majority market, will be extended at least until the autumn. The British Council China advises that it is highly likely that no students will travel for ELT courses at any point in 2020. International surveys of confidence in study abroad are universally low, but we must rally For that road to recovery, my first question is about who is to be its lead author. The English language teaching sector’s needs and interests are caught up in a jigsaw of Departments. Those include, but are not confined to, the Department for Education, the Treasury, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, the Home Office, and, of course, the Department for International Trade. Will the Minister take up the question of whether one owning Department could perhaps provide the focus and firepower for sector representation? In this critical juncture, will he put forward the pressing need to orchestrate a cross-departmental recovery plan to tailor bespoke support to the sector? Will he encourage local councils to extend their support to include local language schools? Many ELT schools are excluded from the business rate relief scheme for retail hospitality and leisure businesses, despite providing educational holidays for more than half a million overseas visitors every year, who stay on average for two, three or four weeks.
Covid-19: International Language Schools — House of Commons, 2020-07-01
Topic: Education
Caroline Ansell (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank the hon. Lady for her question. All matters that impact on the viability of business must be addressed. I know good work has been done on that, and there have been varying performances from different insurance providers. I am heartily sorry to hear that her language school has suffered that additional challenge to its operating base, in what is already a difficult time I would raise the possibility of extending the validity of the six and 11-month visas where course start dates have been postponed, to ensure that the UK’s ELT sector can welcome back those students who had already booked and paid for courses to begin as soon as travel restrictions allow. I would raise issues of education oversight, Ofsted grading, the levelling up of higher education and further education, but this evening I will ask of my hon. Friend the Minister: what provision and plans does the Department for Education have to champion this export industry in the post-lockdown recovery phase? Can we make GREAT and tradeshow access programme funding more available to our education exporters to support promotional campaigns targeting partners and buyers, students and their influencers? That would help ELT organisations to ensure the continuing visibility of brand UK in the recovery phase, when international competitors such as Malta are already lifting travel restrictions and welcoming international students without quarantine I am grateful for this opportunity to raise in an Adjournment debate how important the sector is to communities across the UK, mine included, the difficult path it faces this year and next, and the benefits of future Government action to support it. If we wish to retain those benefits of social and cultural enrichment, of inward investment and soft power, I believe the specific calls of the sector need to be debated, just as its deep value to the UK needs to be celebrated.
Covid-19: International Language Schools — House of Commons, 2020-07-01
Topic: Education
Anthony James Holland Mangnall (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank my hon. Friend for securing this Adjournment debate. She has said everything that I would have said in my speech, so I will keep my remarks extremely brief I urge the Government and the Minister to look at the guidance we can provide to encourage foreign international students to our language schools. I am proud to represent a constituency that has two prominent language schools—English in Totnes and the Totnes European School—and there are a number of others in the constituency of my hon. Friend the Member for Torbay (Kevin Foster). There is a significant problem. If we are not allowed to attract students to this country and to our language schools in the period between May and September, those schools will lose a significant part of their income, with the consequence that their future is in doubt. In addition to the points made by my hon. Friend the Member for Eastbourne (Caroline Ansell), I ask the Government for a couple of things: guidance to make sure that we can attract students when air bridges are opened, and the provision of a clear funding structure, if necessary, to allow the schools to secure their future into 2021. There is a cultural significance to the schools in this country. We should be proud of attracting students from across the world to this country, to see and to learn about our history and our culture and to learn our language. That is something that I feel we can develop in the coming years, as we progress and develop our education system. So many of the students who have come have no clear guidelines. If the Government can provide that, it will be reassuring. We know that in a crisis, reassurance is the vaccine, if I can put it like that, that allows them to prepare for an uncertain future. Again, I thank my hon. Friend for enabling this subject to be debated in the House.
Covid-19: International Language Schools — House of Commons, 2020-07-01
Topic: Education
Graham Charles Stuart (Conservative, Centre-right): On behalf, I am sure, of everyone in the House this evening, I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Eastbourne (Caroline Ansell) on delivering such a powerful and passionate speech on behalf of the sector and on championing it so effectively. I am also grateful to colleagues across the House for engaging with this issue As you know, Mr Deputy Speaker, I have form in this area, having previously been Chairman of the Education Committee. I am now the joint chair, with my hon. Friend the Minister for Universities, of the Government’s education sector advisory group. I have witnessed the truly world-class excellence of UK English language teaching. It is a superb British success story, which enriches the economic and cultural life of the country. As has been said, it helps to bring young people from across the globe to our shores. It enables them to gain a better grasp of our language and a more intimate understanding of, and often affection for, our country. It strengthens our ties with nations worldwide, as international students share their experiences of the UK with their friends and families, building our profile in some of the world’s fastest growing global markets. It fosters business, opportunity and prosperity in all regions and nations of the UK and helps to level up our country.
Covid-19: International Language Schools — House of Commons, 2020-07-01
Topic: Education
Graham Charles Stuart (Conservative, Centre-right): As a trade Minister, I am hesitant to veer off into a Home Office area of responsibility. It is always important to remember, as a member of the Government, that you are like a member of the Borg: you have but a single thought, and you should ensure that you entirely comply, regardless of what your face may say on any particular issue. The words are terribly important English language teaching is central to broader educational success. We have more than 500 accredited centres based right across the country, creating tens of thousands of jobs and generating education exports. We think the figure may even be more like £1.6 billion, but I suppose people have different numbers. It is a very significant number and is part of that wider education piece, with well over £20 billion of educational exports from this country last year Our world-class ELT providers are having a profound impact on the young people they teach, in many cases helping develop a lifetime of affinity to and affection for the UK. Some 80% of students told English UK—the organisation that represents the more than 400 ELT providers—that they planned to return to this country after their courses ended for travel or further study. That is a huge vote of confidence in our ELT sector and our country as a whole as we compete in an increasingly competitive global educational marketplace.
Covid-19: International Language Schools — House of Commons, 2020-07-01
Topic: Education
Anthony James Holland Mangnall (Conservative, Centre-right): I am sorry to add a further point, but does my hon. Friend also recognise the significance of the facts that 35,000 jobs are dependent on ELT schools and that host families play a significant role in hosting those international students?
Covid-19: International Language Schools — House of Commons, 2020-07-01
Topic: Education
Graham Charles Stuart (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend makes suitable points, although in an Adjournment debate I think two bites of the cherry is a little greedy. His points are none the less well made English language teaching is a crucial industry for many of our coastal towns and cities, whose economies and cultural life are enriched by the presence of international students. That includes the five accredited ELT centres in the constituency of my hon. Friend the Member for Eastbourne We have focused tonight so far predominantly on the direct benefits that the sector delivers, but English language teaching plays a key role in underpinning the UK’s wider education system by helping unlock the door for thousands of overseas students to courses at British universities and further education establishments. ELT is not only valuable in itself, but is a pipeline to the broader, wider educational offer.
Covid-19: Domestic Violence — House of Commons, 2020-04-28
Topic: Law and Crime
Sue-Ellen Cassiana Braverman (Conservative, Centre-right): Thank you, Mr Speaker I congratulate the shadow Solicitor General, the hon. Member for Lewisham West and Penge (Ellie Reeves), on her appointment, and the shadow Attorney General, Lord Falconer, on his. I look forward to constructive debate with both of them, hopefully in the same room at some point There is no doubt whatsoever that this Government take domestic abuse and the pain that it causes extremely seriously, and that is especially the case at this time. The Crown Prosecution Service is wholly committed to ensuring that the perpetrators of this horrendous crime face justice and that victims are supported through what is often a very traumatic process.
Covid-19: Domestic Violence — House of Commons, 2020-04-28
Topic: Law and Crime
Sue-Ellen Cassiana Braverman (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank the hon. Lady for her considerable work on this subject and her courage in speaking out about this matter. I myself represented victims of domestic abuse during my time as a lawyer. I have seen how devastating it can be, and I share her goal in wanting to eliminate this scourge from our society. I am very concerned about the rise in domestic abuse offending during lockdown. This is a difficult time for those who may be living with their abuser. That is why the Government have invested an extra £2 million at the frontline for online services and phone lines so that there is help 24 hours a day, seven days a week, for those victims who need it.
Covid-19: Domestic Violence — House of Commons, 2020-04-28
Topic: Law and Crime
Sue-Ellen Cassiana Braverman (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Gentleman makes a very important point. We need to go as far as we possibly can to support vulnerable victims throughout the court process. The CPS is at the forefront of implementing section 28 pre-recorded cross-examination, which aims to allow vulnerable victims to give evidence in advance of trial so that they can have a better experience of the process. I encourage him to look closely at the Domestic Abuse Bill, which contains considerable provisions to protect vulnerable witnesses throughout the court process.
Covid-19: Domestic Violence — House of Commons, 2020-04-28
Topic: Law and Crime
Robert John Blackman (Conservative, Centre-right): I congratulate my right hon. and learned Friend on her new post; I am sure that she will do an excellent job With 100 arrests a day for alleged domestic violence in London alone, clearly the problem is getting worse. What action can my right hon. and learned Friend take to ensure that the victims of domestic abuse feel safe to give evidence against the perpetrators? At the moment, they fear reprisals and are not in a safe position.
Covid-19: Domestic Violence — House of Commons, 2020-04-28
Topic: Law and Crime
Sue-Ellen Cassiana Braverman (Conservative, Centre-right): This is an important point. A range of protections is available for victims so that they can give evidence in such situations. Prosecutors can apply for special measures, including a screen, or for evidence to be given via video link, so that victims do not need to have contact with their abuser in the trial process.
Covid-19: Domestic Violence — House of Commons, 2020-04-28
Topic: Law and Crime
Anthony Edward Timpson (Conservative, Centre-right): It cannot be emphasised enough how important it is that victims of domestic abuse get the support that they need during this very difficult time. Does my right hon. and learned Friend agree that this often-hidden scourge, which affects children as well as adults, must be a priority for the Government at all times, as is demonstrated by the commitments in the Domestic Abuse Bill?
Covid-19: Domestic Violence — House of Commons, 2020-04-28
Topic: Law and Crime
Sue-Ellen Cassiana Braverman (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend speaks with authority about child safeguarding, based on his practice as a barrister and his time in government as a Minister. These crimes are abhorrent, and those who commit them must not be let off the hook. Today, the landmark Domestic Abuse Bill returns to the Commons for its Second Reading. I am very proud to have personally supported this landmark legislation that provides support—legal and otherwise—for victims of domestic abuse, including children, so that we as a nation take a step further towards eliminating domestic abuse.
Covid-19: Domestic Violence — House of Commons, 2020-04-28
Topic: Law and Crime
Sue-Ellen Cassiana Braverman (Conservative, Centre-right): I am acutely concerned by the rise in domestic abuse offences in lockdown, and I want to make two points. First, the Domestic Abuse Bill, which returns to the Commons today, will involve the allocation of £3.1 million to services supporting children who witness domestic abuse in the house during lockdown. Secondly, I want to take this opportunity to let victims out there—men and women—know that they do not have to suffer in silence. There is support for them if they seek it. Please pick up the phone and dial 999; press 55 if you cannot speak. Use the national domestic abuse helpline. Crucially, please know that if you want to flee your abuser—if you want to leave the home—you will not be breaking coronavirus regulations. You will not be breaking the law if you seek help outside.
Serious Fraud — House of Commons, 2020-04-28
Topic: Law and Crime
Sue-Ellen Cassiana Braverman (Conservative, Centre-right): Last year, the Crown Prosecution Service prosecuted over 10,000 defendants where the principal offence was fraud or forgery. It also has a specialist fraud division, which brings together expertise and skills to prosecute complex and serious fraud.
Serious Fraud — House of Commons, 2020-04-28
Topic: Government Operations
Kevin Paul Hollinrake (Conservative, Centre-right): I welcome my right hon. and learned Friend to her role. She will do a tremendous job, and she has an immediate opportunity to right a wrong. It is 10 years since my constituent, Ian Foxley, blew the whistle on corrupt payments at GPT Special Project Management. That has not come to a resolution. Will she now bring it to a resolution and ensure that my constituent and others in the same situation are properly compensated?
Serious Fraud — House of Commons, 2020-04-28
Topic: Law and Crime
Sue-Ellen Cassiana Braverman (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank my hon. Friend for his extensive work on that case. He has been indefatigable in seeking a resolution for his constituent—of that there is no doubt. Unfortunately, I cannot comment on the details of the case, because the Serious Fraud Office is undertaking criminal investigations into the affairs of GPT and Saudi Arabia, which have taken some time because of the significant complexity involved. However, I would like to reassure my hon. Friend, because upon my appointment to this job, that case was one of the first matters, if not the first, to cross my desk, so it is a priority for me and I will not rest until we find an appropriate resolution.
Serious Fraud — House of Commons, 2020-04-28
Topic: Law and Crime
David Anthony Evennett (Conservative, Centre-right): I appreciate all the work my right hon. and learned Friend is doing in her new job at this difficult time. Naturally, there is real concern about crime, particularly fraud against the elderly. How is the CPS tackling cases of covid-19-related fraud?
Serious Fraud — House of Commons, 2020-04-28
Topic: Law and Crime
Sue-Ellen Cassiana Braverman (Conservative, Centre-right): This is an important issue. Sadly, criminals are looking to take advantage of the vulnerable during this pandemic. It is shameful and disgusting, but sadly it is a fact of life. We recognise the threat posed, and that is why the CPS and the police have published a joint charging protocol that makes it clear that covid-related fraud will be a priority for an immediate charging decision. I am glad that, as a result, we have already seen some successful prosecutions of such offences.
Covid-19: CPS — House of Commons, 2020-04-28
Topic: Law and Crime
Sue-Ellen Cassiana Braverman (Conservative, Centre-right): I would like to put on record my thanks to the whole CPS family and, indeed, the wider justice system for their hard work during this uncertain period. CPS staff are working remotely and, where safe to do so, in person. They are playing a full part in supporting the criminal justice system’s response to the pandemic with the use of more technology, more collaboration and planning for recovery.
Covid-19: CPS — House of Commons, 2020-04-28
Topic: Law and Crime
William Peter Wragg (Conservative, Centre-right): I welcome my right hon. and learned Friend to her post. Further to her answer, will she tell me how the Crown Prosecution Service is working with the courts to manage the impact of covid-19 on its services and particularly to support them in planning for recovery, not least for the administration of justice?
Covid-19: CPS — House of Commons, 2020-04-28
Topic: Law and Crime
Sue-Ellen Cassiana Braverman (Conservative, Centre-right): Justice is non-negotiable, and notwithstanding the crisis we are facing, it is important that justice continues to be done and continues to be seen to be done. There has been very effective work between the CPS and other partners—for example, the judiciary and the Courts Service—to ensure that practical arrangements are put in place so that, as far as possible, our justice system continues to function through the use of technology and the efficient management of resources. The CPS is also working with partners to turn its focus towards recovery, including exploring options for a phased recovery.
Covid-19: CPS — House of Commons, 2020-04-28
Topic: Law and Crime
Thomas Patrick Hunt (Conservative, Centre-right): Over recent weeks, we have seen a shameful trend in suspected criminals spitting and coughing at police officers. There have been a number of cases in my constituency of Ipswich, and it is a particularly pernicious form of assault during a covid-19 outbreak. Those responsible must have their day in court, and that day must come quickly so that they can be duly punished and others can be deterred from doing this. What steps is my right hon. and learned Friend taking to ensure that the CPS is right behind our police in prosecuting those responsible for this horrible crime and bringing them to justice quickly?
Covid-19: CPS — House of Commons, 2020-04-28
Topic: Law and Crime
Sue-Ellen Cassiana Braverman (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend makes a crucial point. Those on the frontline—those in the trenches of this battle—who are risking their own safety in the service of others are the heroes in this crisis and they deserve nothing less than our admiration. That is why assaults on emergency workers will not be tolerated. Those who commit these sickening offences will face the full force of the law. I am glad to have seen—if "glad" is the right word to use—that the CPS has successfully prosecuted several such offences recently.
Covid-19: CPS — House of Commons, 2020-04-28
Topic: Law and Crime
Robert Largan (Conservative, Centre-right): What steps are the Government, along with the CPS, taking to ensure that this current crisis does not leave us with an enormous backlog of court cases that could lead to huge costs and delay justice for a long time to come?
Covid-19: CPS — House of Commons, 2020-04-28
Topic: Law and Crime
Sue-Ellen Cassiana Braverman (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend raises an important point. The CPS and others have been working at pace to ensure that justice continues to be served. The Coronavirus Act 2020 enables the use of video and digital technology to facilitate court hearings during this crisis. The CPS is working with the judiciary to manage the listing of cases, so that cases that can be dealt with by way of a guilty plea or by other disposal are prioritised, which will go some way towards reducing the backlog in the system.
Covid-19: Remand on Bail — House of Commons, 2020-04-28
Topic: Law and Crime
Sue-Ellen Cassiana Braverman (Conservative, Centre-right): [Inaudible]—capacity across the criminal justice system, and our focus is to ensure that the most dangerous offenders are dealt with as a priority. All cases with an approaching trial date, including bail cases, are under review to ensure that serious and time-sensitive cases are prioritised for trial and that any bail conditions remain suitable.
Covid-19: Remand on Bail — House of Commons, 2020-04-28
Topic: Law and Crime
Sue-Ellen Cassiana Braverman (Conservative, Centre-right): Clearly, any bail should be for the shortest possible period, because it restricts the ability of an individual to carry out their normal life while they remain innocent until proven guilty. Each case needs to be assessed on the individual facts, including the potential risks posed by a defendant of, for example, further offending or absconding. There are statutory limits underpinning the conditions that can be imposed, and the defendant has a right to apply to the court to vary or remove any conditions of bail. We need to ensure that these cases continue to be dealt with expeditiously, and the CPS is working with the judiciary to consider options for restarting some trials while maintaining social distancing.
Pro Bono Work — House of Commons, 2020-04-28
Topic: Law and Crime
John Robert Lamont (Conservative, Centre-right): The pro bono offer in this country is incredible, and I pay tribute to all those in the legal services market who provide free legal services. Does the Solicitor General agree that we need to do more to promote greater awareness among the public about the legal services that are on offer in this country?