argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2020-01-21
Topic: Macroeconomics
Questions: They have a combined annual turnover of £60 billion and there are 100,000 of them, but this Government seem to have a bit of a blind spot when it comes to social enterprises. When will that change? Will they start by redirecting all questions on social enterprise away from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, where they seem to have been shunted, and into the heart of this Department? They would then send a powerful message that profit-making can be socially responsible.; Employers like the Sovereign Housing Association and our community furniture project are giving young people with learning disabilities in Basingstoke the opportunity to get work experience through the Government-supported internship programme run by the Basingstoke College of Technology in my constituency. Will my right hon. Friend join me in encouraging even more employers to come forward, not only in Basingstoke but across the country, to help more disabled people with learning disabilities to reach their potential at work?; Will my right hon. Friend update the House on what plans the Government have to secure the number of scientists, researchers and engineers we will require to reach the 2.4% GDP spend on research and development?; Community energy is crucial in the transition to a local, smart, zero-carbon energy system. Will the responsible Minister meet me and sector representatives to map out a way forward that enables community energy to play that crucial part?; As many of the big banks withdraw their support for rural areas, the post office network is becoming increasingly relevant to communities such as mine. I know the Minister cares passionately about the rural post office network, so will she do all she can to ensure that it is supported in constituencies?; As chair of the all-party group on disability, I have become increasingly concerned that entrepreneurs with disabilities are facing additional challenges in starting businesses, such as on access to business loans. Will the Minister meet our group and ensure that we have a truly inclusive economy? [R]; Will the Government consider introducing a small business equivalent of the personal allowance, exempting small businesses from all taxes other than VAT and assisting small businesses such as Maynard’s ice cream in my constituency in meeting the challenge of increases in the living wage?
Kelly Jane Tolhurst (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank my hon .Friend for his question and very much welcome him back to this place, as an extremely valued member of the Select Committee on Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, on which he served with me—I am pleased to have him back. He raises an interesting idea. The UK has a highly competitive tax environment, and we need to do more to support our small businesses with the cost of doing business. That is why the Government have committed to launching a fundamental review of business rates, and Treasury colleagues will be giving more details on that in due course.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2020-01-21
Topic: Macroeconomics
Questions: They have a combined annual turnover of £60 billion and there are 100,000 of them, but this Government seem to have a bit of a blind spot when it comes to social enterprises. When will that change? Will they start by redirecting all questions on social enterprise away from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, where they seem to have been shunted, and into the heart of this Department? They would then send a powerful message that profit-making can be socially responsible.; Employers like the Sovereign Housing Association and our community furniture project are giving young people with learning disabilities in Basingstoke the opportunity to get work experience through the Government-supported internship programme run by the Basingstoke College of Technology in my constituency. Will my right hon. Friend join me in encouraging even more employers to come forward, not only in Basingstoke but across the country, to help more disabled people with learning disabilities to reach their potential at work?; Will my right hon. Friend update the House on what plans the Government have to secure the number of scientists, researchers and engineers we will require to reach the 2.4% GDP spend on research and development?; Community energy is crucial in the transition to a local, smart, zero-carbon energy system. Will the responsible Minister meet me and sector representatives to map out a way forward that enables community energy to play that crucial part?; As many of the big banks withdraw their support for rural areas, the post office network is becoming increasingly relevant to communities such as mine. I know the Minister cares passionately about the rural post office network, so will she do all she can to ensure that it is supported in constituencies?; As chair of the all-party group on disability, I have become increasingly concerned that entrepreneurs with disabilities are facing additional challenges in starting businesses, such as on access to business loans. Will the Minister meet our group and ensure that we have a truly inclusive economy? [R]; Will the Government consider introducing a small business equivalent of the personal allowance, exempting small businesses from all taxes other than VAT and assisting small businesses such as Maynard’s ice cream in my constituency in meeting the challenge of increases in the living wage?
Nadhim Zahawi (Conservative, Centre-right): Since it launched in April 2016, Ceramic Valley enterprise zone has been a fantastic success: it has attracted private sector investment and has already secured 1,000 new jobs in Stoke. The Government are prioritising levelling up, as the Prime Minister continuously reminds us. We will want to reflect on those things, such as Ceramic Valley enterprise zone, that have worked and see how we can support them further.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2020-01-21
Topic: Labor
Questions: They have a combined annual turnover of £60 billion and there are 100,000 of them, but this Government seem to have a bit of a blind spot when it comes to social enterprises. When will that change? Will they start by redirecting all questions on social enterprise away from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, where they seem to have been shunted, and into the heart of this Department? They would then send a powerful message that profit-making can be socially responsible.; Employers like the Sovereign Housing Association and our community furniture project are giving young people with learning disabilities in Basingstoke the opportunity to get work experience through the Government-supported internship programme run by the Basingstoke College of Technology in my constituency. Will my right hon. Friend join me in encouraging even more employers to come forward, not only in Basingstoke but across the country, to help more disabled people with learning disabilities to reach their potential at work?; Will my right hon. Friend update the House on what plans the Government have to secure the number of scientists, researchers and engineers we will require to reach the 2.4% GDP spend on research and development?; Community energy is crucial in the transition to a local, smart, zero-carbon energy system. Will the responsible Minister meet me and sector representatives to map out a way forward that enables community energy to play that crucial part?; As many of the big banks withdraw their support for rural areas, the post office network is becoming increasingly relevant to communities such as mine. I know the Minister cares passionately about the rural post office network, so will she do all she can to ensure that it is supported in constituencies?; As chair of the all-party group on disability, I have become increasingly concerned that entrepreneurs with disabilities are facing additional challenges in starting businesses, such as on access to business loans. Will the Minister meet our group and ensure that we have a truly inclusive economy? [R]; Will the Government consider introducing a small business equivalent of the personal allowance, exempting small businesses from all taxes other than VAT and assisting small businesses such as Maynard’s ice cream in my constituency in meeting the challenge of increases in the living wage?
Kelly Jane Tolhurst (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank the hon. Gentleman for highlighting the self-employment market. We committed in our manifesto not only to look at self-employment but to make sure that the UK is the best place to work, and we will make sure that that includes flexibility. He will know that we are bringing forward an employment Bill. We are determined to make the UK the best place to work, and that includes shared parental leave and working with families to make it easier for women to get back into work.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2020-01-21
Topic: Environment
Questions: They have a combined annual turnover of £60 billion and there are 100,000 of them, but this Government seem to have a bit of a blind spot when it comes to social enterprises. When will that change? Will they start by redirecting all questions on social enterprise away from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, where they seem to have been shunted, and into the heart of this Department? They would then send a powerful message that profit-making can be socially responsible.; Employers like the Sovereign Housing Association and our community furniture project are giving young people with learning disabilities in Basingstoke the opportunity to get work experience through the Government-supported internship programme run by the Basingstoke College of Technology in my constituency. Will my right hon. Friend join me in encouraging even more employers to come forward, not only in Basingstoke but across the country, to help more disabled people with learning disabilities to reach their potential at work?; Will my right hon. Friend update the House on what plans the Government have to secure the number of scientists, researchers and engineers we will require to reach the 2.4% GDP spend on research and development?; Community energy is crucial in the transition to a local, smart, zero-carbon energy system. Will the responsible Minister meet me and sector representatives to map out a way forward that enables community energy to play that crucial part?; As many of the big banks withdraw their support for rural areas, the post office network is becoming increasingly relevant to communities such as mine. I know the Minister cares passionately about the rural post office network, so will she do all she can to ensure that it is supported in constituencies?; As chair of the all-party group on disability, I have become increasingly concerned that entrepreneurs with disabilities are facing additional challenges in starting businesses, such as on access to business loans. Will the Minister meet our group and ensure that we have a truly inclusive economy? [R]; Will the Government consider introducing a small business equivalent of the personal allowance, exempting small businesses from all taxes other than VAT and assisting small businesses such as Maynard’s ice cream in my constituency in meeting the challenge of increases in the living wage?
Andrea Jacqueline Leadsom (Conservative, Centre-right): The right hon. Gentleman makes a vital point. It is not enough that we just look at our own behaviour here in the United Kingdom, where we are determined to meet our net-zero ambitions; we should also do all we can to lead the world in tackling the climate emergency. In our plans in the run-up to COP26, we have set out some really ambitious ideas for how we can not only work at home to decarbonise but help the rest of the world in their efforts to solve their own problems and behave better in the way they travel.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2020-01-21
Topic: Technology
Questions: They have a combined annual turnover of £60 billion and there are 100,000 of them, but this Government seem to have a bit of a blind spot when it comes to social enterprises. When will that change? Will they start by redirecting all questions on social enterprise away from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, where they seem to have been shunted, and into the heart of this Department? They would then send a powerful message that profit-making can be socially responsible.; Employers like the Sovereign Housing Association and our community furniture project are giving young people with learning disabilities in Basingstoke the opportunity to get work experience through the Government-supported internship programme run by the Basingstoke College of Technology in my constituency. Will my right hon. Friend join me in encouraging even more employers to come forward, not only in Basingstoke but across the country, to help more disabled people with learning disabilities to reach their potential at work?; Will my right hon. Friend update the House on what plans the Government have to secure the number of scientists, researchers and engineers we will require to reach the 2.4% GDP spend on research and development?; Community energy is crucial in the transition to a local, smart, zero-carbon energy system. Will the responsible Minister meet me and sector representatives to map out a way forward that enables community energy to play that crucial part?; As many of the big banks withdraw their support for rural areas, the post office network is becoming increasingly relevant to communities such as mine. I know the Minister cares passionately about the rural post office network, so will she do all she can to ensure that it is supported in constituencies?; As chair of the all-party group on disability, I have become increasingly concerned that entrepreneurs with disabilities are facing additional challenges in starting businesses, such as on access to business loans. Will the Minister meet our group and ensure that we have a truly inclusive economy? [R]; Will the Government consider introducing a small business equivalent of the personal allowance, exempting small businesses from all taxes other than VAT and assisting small businesses such as Maynard’s ice cream in my constituency in meeting the challenge of increases in the living wage?
Anthony Howe Browne (Conservative, Centre-right): My constituency of South Cambridgeshire is no less than the life sciences capital of the world. We have the global headquarters of AstraZeneca, 20,000 people working in the biomedical campus around Addenbrooke’s Hospital and dozens of industrial parks and small businesses developing new therapies, helping people to live longer and healthier. Many of those companies are dependent on research grants, some of which come from the EU. Will my hon. Friend tell me what work the Government are doing to ensure that South Cambridge remains the biomedical and life sciences capital of the world, and that companies have continuity of funding once we leave the EU?
Direct Payments to Farmers (Legislative Continuity) Bill — House of Commons, 2020-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Theresa Anne Villiers (Conservative, Centre-right): I beg to move, That the Bill be now read a Second time This is a Government who are backing Britain’s farmers. We will always recognise the importance of the work that they do to care for our countryside and our natural environment and, of course, to put food on our plates. We know that, if we are to level up the rural economy in the way we want to for our whole country, we must support the agriculture that is at the heart of our rural communities The Bill is a short technical piece of legislation with a simple purpose: to empower the UK Government and the devolved Administrations to pay basic payments to farmers for the 2020 scheme year. It therefore maintains the status quo for pillar 1 for this final period before we start to leave the common agricultural policy behind completely The core purpose of the Bill is enacted by clause 1, which puts direct payment legislation for 2020 on the domestic statute book. That provides a legal basis to make such payments for the 2020 scheme year. As hon. Members will be aware, almost all EU legislation was imported on to the domestic statute book by the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018, but funding for the 2020 basic payment scheme will come out of the 2021 EU budget. That would therefore have involved the UK in the next EU multi-annual budget cycle. In the negotiations, the EU and the UK agreed that they did not want that to happen, so the CAP provisions providing the basis to issue basic payments in the UK for 2020 were disapplied by the terms of the withdrawal agreement reached last year That policy decision has left a legal gap, which we are now proposing to fill. This legislation will provide clarity to farmers on funding support this year. If Parliament were to reject the Bill, no direct payments could be made by the UK Government or by the Administrations in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland. That would have serious consequences for farmers across the nation who have planned their businesses on the basis of continuity of direct payments for this scheme year.
Direct Payments to Farmers (Legislative Continuity) Bill — House of Commons, 2020-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Theresa Anne Villiers (Conservative, Centre-right): In our manifesto, the Government set out our commitment to retain 2019 levels of support for farmers throughout the current Parliament. The exact basis of the allocation and division of those funds remains to be determined, but we will work closely with the devolved Administrations in taking decisions.
Direct Payments to Farmers (Legislative Continuity) Bill — House of Commons, 2020-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Harriett Mary Morison Baldwin (Conservative, Centre-right): I welcome the certainty given to farmers and food producers for 2020. What advice would the Secretary of State give to an estate agent in my constituency on how it should value a significant estate currently in receipt of quite a lot of common agricultural payments?
Direct Payments to Farmers (Legislative Continuity) Bill — House of Commons, 2020-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Theresa Anne Villiers (Conservative, Centre-right): It will be important for the estate agent in question to follow developments relating to the transition to a new system of farm support in England. I will outline that later in my remarks, but we view leaving the common agricultural policy as a vital opportunity to create a better system that more effectively supports our farmers and enables them to deliver crucial public goods, including for the environment and animal welfare.
Direct Payments to Farmers (Legislative Continuity) Bill — House of Commons, 2020-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Theresa Anne Villiers (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Gentleman makes an important point about farmers’ need for certainty and continuity, which is one of the reasons why we have brought forward this Bill today. That is also why we propose a seven-year transition period to move away from the basic payments of the common agricultural policy and towards the new approach of environmental land management for England, which this House will have the chance to debate within the next few weeks.
Direct Payments to Farmers (Legislative Continuity) Bill — House of Commons, 2020-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Theresa Anne Villiers (Conservative, Centre-right): The Bill is a vital stepping stone to getting us to the transition period in 2021, when we will start to introduce our national pilot for the environmental land management schemes, which will replace the common agricultural policy in the United Kingdom. We have every expectation that those schemes will enable farmers to do even more than they presently do to protect habitat and valuable biodiversity.
Direct Payments to Farmers (Legislative Continuity) Bill — House of Commons, 2020-01-21
Topic: Macroeconomics
Neil Quentin Gordon Parish (Conservative, Centre-right): I am the former Chairman at the moment. I very much welcome the Secretary of State’s statement. It is great to have continuity. I want to return to the point made by the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross (Jamie Stone) about the value of the payment. At present, the payment is made in euros; the rate used is the average rate in September. Does my right hon. Friend expect this year’s payment to be virtually the same as that for last year? In the past it was based on the value of the euro at the time of the payment, but I imagine that that will not be the case this time.
Direct Payments to Farmers (Legislative Continuity) Bill — House of Commons, 2020-01-21
Topic: Macroeconomics
Theresa Anne Villiers (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend is correct to say that taking over domestic responsibility for the payments means that the currency fluctuation, which has had such a significant impact in past years, is not likely to affect payment levels in the same way. None the less, we have yet to decide the exact levels of basic payments, although the Chancellor has set out the overall spending envelope with which to fund such payments.
Direct Payments to Farmers (Legislative Continuity) Bill — House of Commons, 2020-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Timothy Paul Loughton (Conservative, Centre-right): As we move towards the transition period—more will be appearing in the Agriculture Bill—we obviously welcome the environmental sustainability measures. One thing that is not mentioned here is the fact that many farmers look after places of archaeological interests—scheduled monuments that have access for the public and need to be maintained. Does the Secretary of State envisage that the payment system will recognise that farmers are not just there to enhance agriculture and produce food; they are also stewards of historical and archaeological monuments, for which they need to be compensated?
Direct Payments to Farmers (Legislative Continuity) Bill — House of Commons, 2020-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Theresa Anne Villiers (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend will be pleased to hear that clause 1 of the Agriculture Bill, which Parliament will have the chance to consider very soon, does recognise the importance of access to the countryside, and to our culture and heritage, by listing that as one of the public goods that we can potentially support through our new farm support scheme. He makes an important point I am pleased to say that the Chancellor confirmed on 30 December that overall levels of funding available for direct payments for 2020 will be the same as those for 2019, so the Government will provide £2.852 billion of support, topping up remaining EU funding. That announcement from the Chancellor, combined with this Bill, provides reassurance to the devolved Administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland that they will be able to issue basic payments to their farmers in 2020. All four Administrations have said that these payments will be made, and that is in addition to the £216.6 million of further funding secured in the summer for farmers in Scotland and Wales.
Direct Payments to Farmers (Legislative Continuity) Bill — House of Commons, 2020-01-21
Topic: Agriculture
Scott Leslie Mann (Conservative, Centre-right): I welcome the £3 billion announcement from the Treasury supporting our farmers, showing again that the Conservative Government support our rural communities. In the transition period from the current system to the new one, could this be done on a multi-annualised basis, so that some of our farmers can invest in some of their infrastructure to prepare themselves for the challenges that lie ahead?