argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Calais — House of Commons, 2015-07-14
Topic: Other
Christopher Stephen Grayling (Conservative, Centre-right): On a point of order, Mr Speaker—[Interruption.] I wish to inform the House that in a correction to the business statement I made on Thursday, tomorrow’s business will begin with the Appropriations Bill and continue with a full day’s debate on the issue of English votes for English laws, as set out last week.
Calais — House of Commons, 2015-07-14
Topic: Other
John Simon Bercow (Conservative, Centre-right): I am grateful to the Leader of the House—[Interruption.] Order. Ordinarily, when there is a change to business, there is a supplementary business statement to the House. If I may say so, that is the proper course to follow. In this place, we tend to be guided and governed to a considerable extent by precedent, and I simply make the point—I hope in a gentle, understated and courteous way—that following that precedent would seem to be sensible. It is not obvious why there should be a departure from it. That said, I thank the Leader of the House for what he has said. It is the fact that he has dealt with it in this way that has been the cause of some commotion.
Calais — House of Commons, 2015-07-14
Topic: Other
John Simon Bercow (Conservative, Centre-right): The resources of civilisation have not been exhausted. Precisely because I thought that ordinarily such a matter would be treated by way of a supplementary business statement, and in the light of the evident interest in the House in the matter, I will, with the agreement of the House, treat it as a supplementary business statement, in relation to which colleagues’ contributions are therefore not just invited but welcomed.
Calais — House of Commons, 2015-07-14
Topic: Other
John Simon Bercow (Conservative, Centre-right): Order. Forgive me if I did not make myself sufficiently clear. We are very pleased to have the Leader of the House here. What I said was that, as this would normally be a supplementary business statement, we will operate on that basis. Therefore, there is no "Further to that point of order." The right hon. Gentleman, in his full splendour, can now ask a question to which I hope he will elicit a reply from the Leader of the House.
Points of Order — House of Commons, 2015-07-14
Topic: Other
John Simon Bercow (Conservative, Centre-right): The short answer is no. It is up to Members to be in their place and to take their opportunity. I believe there will be a business question on Thursday, and I merely encourage other right hon. and hon. Members in all parts of the House, whatever subject is of interest to them, to display the same perspicacity as the hon. Gentleman.
Points of Order — House of Commons, 2015-07-14
Topic: Mixed Topics
John Simon Bercow (Conservative, Centre-right): It is certainly right that statements should be made first to the House. However illustrious the British Broadcasting Corporation might be, it does not deserve to hear of such matters before elected Members of Parliament. Statements should certainly be made first to the House Bill Presented National Insurance Contributions (Rate Ceilings) Bill Presentation and First Reading (Standing Order No. 57) Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, supported by the Prime Minister, Mr Secretary Duncan Smith, Secretary Sajid Javid, Greg Hands, Mr David Gauke, Damian Hinds and Harriett Baldwin, presented a Bill to set a ceiling on the main and additional primary percentages, the secondary percentage and the upper earnings limit in relation to Class 1 national insurance contributions Bill read the First time; to be read a Second time tomorrow, and to be printed (Bill 54) with explanatory notes (Bill 54-EN).
Budget Resolutions and Economic Situation — House of Commons, 2015-07-14
Topic: Domestic Commerce
David Henry Rutley (Conservative, Centre-right): I welcome my right hon. Friend’s announcements. In tandem with the enterprise Bill and plans to review self-employment, does he agree that they will help boost the enterprise culture that we Government Members believe is vital to further the interests of our national economy?
Budget Resolutions and Economic Situation — House of Commons, 2015-07-14
Topic: Mixed Topics
Sajid Javid (Conservative, Centre-right): People will be receiving the new national living wage, as set out by the Chancellor in his Budget. That is a huge step forward, raising the incomes of millions of people throughout Britain. At least 2.6 million people will benefit directly, and a further 6 million will also benefit. I am sure that the hon. Gentleman will join me in welcoming that.
Budget Resolutions and Economic Situation — House of Commons, 2015-07-14
Topic: Mixed Topics
Rishi Sunak (Conservative, Centre-right): It is clear that university graduates’ earning power is raised. It is hardly fair to ask people working hard without the benefits of a university degree to pay for the earnings of someone in the legal profession or the City who is earning a great deal. That is why this Government created a progressive system whereby those who earn more pay more back and those who do not pay just a fair share.
Budget Resolutions and Economic Situation — House of Commons, 2015-07-14
Topic: Other
Eleanor Fulton Laing (Conservative, Centre-right): Order. The hon. Lady has just made an excellent speech—particularly her reference to William Wallace and Elderslie, where I was also born—but the House will show its appreciation in a way other than clapping. [Hon. Members: "Hear, hear!"] The House—[Hon. Members: "Aye!"] Yes, the House can show its appreciation vociferously—just do not clap.
Budget Resolutions and Economic Situation — House of Commons, 2015-07-14
Topic: Domestic Commerce
James Spencer Cleverly (Conservative, Centre-right): According to figures published by the Office for National Statistics in 2014, there are 4,155 businesses in my constituency, but that is almost certainly a considerable underestimate. Many businesses will have started up since the figures were compiled, and many others are not captured by official statistics because they fall below the VAT threshold. Of those businesses, 90% are defined as micro-businesses, having between zero and nine employees. That, too, is almost certainly an underestimate, because it is in the micro-business sector—the back-bedroom business, the converted garage business, the former farm outbuilding business—that we see the most expansion. Those businesses form the cornerstone of the British economy. Other members have rightly spoken with pride about the number of businesses in their constituencies, but it is at that end of the business spectrum, the small and micro-business end, that the largest opportunity for employment growth presents itself I was deeply disappointed, saddened and shocked by how infrequently the shadow Secretary of State used the words "business", "firm" or "company" during the half hour that he spent at the Dispatch Box. The simple truth is that, eloquent as the hon. Gentleman is, and good as he is at using words, the words that he used today were fundamentally flawed. This country is, has been and always will be built on a business foundation, and when the Labour party loses sight of that fact, we are in trouble. I am very proud that my party has presented a Budget with business at its heart.
Budget Resolutions and Economic Situation — House of Commons, 2015-07-14
Topic: Domestic Commerce
Paul Stuart Scully (Conservative, Centre-right): Does my hon. Friend agree that what the Chancellor has done is help set businesses free from regulation and lower taxes, whereas Labour tends to add regulation and layers of bureaucracy, which makes it far harder to start and grow a business?
Budget Resolutions and Economic Situation — House of Commons, 2015-07-14
Topic: Domestic Commerce
James Spencer Cleverly (Conservative, Centre-right): As is often the case, I am in considerable agreement with my hon. Friend, who I know shares my passion for, and understanding of, small business I feel guilty that I have not yet congratulated my hon. Friends on the Conservative Benches who have just made their maiden speeches. I will now set that right. Both of them have strong business backgrounds and credentials—my hon. Friends the Members for Kensington (Victoria Borwick) and for Brecon and Radnorshire (Chris Davies). I almost said "Brecon and Renfrewshire".
Budget Resolutions and Economic Situation — House of Commons, 2015-07-14
Topic: Domestic Commerce
James Spencer Cleverly (Conservative, Centre-right): That would be a big constituency I also wish to put on record my huge admiration for the hon. Member for Paisley and Renfrewshire South (Mhairi Black) for her excellent and punchy delivery of what was an impassioned and very well thought-through maiden speech—I have already written a personal note to her. Her maiden speech was more political than I would perhaps have delivered, but it was none the weaker for that An understanding of small business is essential if the British economy is to succeed and I am proud that my Government have recognised the significant part small businesses play not just in the economic prosperity of this country, but in its social prosperity. Employment does not just give people the opportunity to pay the bills; it gives them a sense of worth and place, and it is a foundation stone in their lives that enables them to blossom and flourish in so many other areas.
Budget Resolutions and Economic Situation — House of Commons, 2015-07-14
Topic: Domestic Commerce
James Spencer Cleverly (Conservative, Centre-right): I will take it that the hon. Lady misheard the opening of my speech. I did not say that the shadow Business Secretary failed to mention business; I said I was horrified by how seldom he used the words "business" and "firm" in his speech.
Budget Resolutions and Economic Situation — House of Commons, 2015-07-14
Topic: Domestic Commerce
Kwasi Alfred Addo Kwarteng (Conservative, Centre-right): The broader point my hon. Friend makes is absolutely right: in the run-up to the election the Labour party gave absolutely no indication whatever that it had the faintest interest in the wealth-creating business part of this country. There was—
Budget Resolutions and Economic Situation — House of Commons, 2015-07-14
Topic: Domestic Commerce
James Spencer Cleverly (Conservative, Centre-right): I am running short of time and have been very generous in taking interventions, so if the hon. Lady forgives me I will continue. The message that came through loud and clear on the doorsteps when I visited businesses in my constituency during the election campaign was that they did not feel that the Labour party understood them or was sympathetic to their plight. The hon. Member for Worsley and Eccles South (Barbara Keeley) asked me specifically about business rates. We are going to have a business rates review—
Budget Resolutions and Economic Situation — House of Commons, 2015-07-14
Topic: Domestic Commerce
James Spencer Cleverly (Conservative, Centre-right): I am not a member of the Government. The hon. Lady needs to take that up with a member of the Government. If anyone wants to make me a member of the Government, however, my door is always open Small businesses need a tax and regulatory framework that is sympathetic to their needs, but they also need interventions that will unlock their potential. I am unapologetic that I am now going to mention the need for broadband in rural Britain, and I shall continue to mention it almost every time I get to my feet in the Chamber. I recently visited a business in my constituency, ESco Business Services Ltd. It provides services to the magazine industry, dealing with magazine subscriptions and prizes and so on. It is a digitally enabled business, and much of its work is done online. It is in a building in the middle of the countryside, near the picturesque village of Finchingfield. It provides good quality, well-paid local employment, and it relies absolutely on good quality digital connectivity, without which it would be unable to locate where it is. Instead, it would be forced to locate in a nearby city such as Cambridge, or even in London. If we are to spread economic activity in this country away from London, it is really important that we open the door to businesses such as ESco to allow them to locate where the potential employees are, rather than where the broadband is I echo the point made about road investment, and I make no apology for once again mentioning the A120, which is sorely in need of attention. My Government understand the needs of small businesses—I am far from convinced that the Labour party does—which is why I welcome the Budget and will be supporting it in the Lobby later.
Budget Resolutions and Economic Situation — House of Commons, 2015-07-14
Topic: Mixed Topics
Paul Stuart Scully (Conservative, Centre-right): It is a pleasure to follow the hon. Member for Blaydon (Mr Anderson), who gave us a more than adequate demonstration of what one might call the Corbynisation of the Labour party. It is an equal pleasure and a privilege to follow three fantastic maiden speeches. My hon. Friend the Member for Kensington (Victoria Borwick) reminded me that I must go back and flick through my copy of the "Alan Clark Diaries", which I did enjoy. I was not present to hear the speech of my hon. Friend the Member for Brecon and Radnorshire (Chris Davies), but knowing him as I do, I am sure he lit up the House. I look forward to reading his maiden speech in Hansard. I had to go to visit a constituent who is a black cab driver attending a rally upstairs about Uber. Those people are small business people in their own right, and it is important that we take that into consideration. As has been said, the hon. Member for Paisley and Renfrewshire South (Mhairi Black) gave a fantastic maiden speech, and I know we will hear far more of her in the years to come For 20 years or so, I have run my own small business—I refer the House to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests. Being responsible for other people’s livelihoods, going through bad times when one struggles to pay the mortgage and the bills, but also during the good times of real success when one can think, "Actually, that was down to me and my efforts as a self-employed businessman"—those experiences give one a perspective on life, on business life, on working life, on wages and on what it means for people to strive and take opportunities. That is why I welcome so many of the measures that the Chancellor has given us in the Budget, in stark contrast with Labour. In the lead-up to the election, we had what has been described as the heaviest suicide note in history—the Ed stone.
Budget Resolutions and Economic Situation — House of Commons, 2015-07-14
Topic: Domestic Commerce
Paul Stuart Scully (Conservative, Centre-right): The combination of measures—paying the lowest paid more and softening the cost to employers with the increase in employment allowance— will help businesses solve that problem themselves The Budget is only one part of helping to build growth and productivity. It is the Whitehall part, but we also have the town hall part. We need to look at our changing high streets and at issues such as parking. For example, Ross’s Fruiterers in Worcester Park is a real centre of the community—my hon. Friends the Members for Aldridge-Brownhills (Wendy Morton) and for Braintree (James Cleverly) made similar points—because everybody knows Ross Nelson and uses his business as their local shop. The key issue for him is parking, as it is for hundreds of shops and small businesses in Sutton and Cheam and Worcester Park. He needs stop-and-shop parking so that his delivery vans can come and go. That is a matter not for the Chancellor, but for the local authority and Transport for London, so we need to work in partnership The third part of the jigsaw is businesses themselves. As we heard earlier, Governments do not create jobs; businesses do. Having been a businessman for 20 years, I feel that, in becoming a politician, I am a poacher turned gamekeeper. However, I still believe that business people are far better placed than any politician to solve the problems faced by retailers dealing with changing high streets or by small businesses trying to attract more customers and grow. Members will remember Ronald Reagan’s remark that the nine most terrifying words in the English language are, "I’m from the Government and I’m here to help."
Budget Resolutions and Economic Situation — House of Commons, 2015-07-14
Topic: Domestic Commerce
Christopher John Pincher (Conservative, Centre-right): I am obliged to my hon. Friend, who is being generous in giving way. Of course, the Labour party was never there to help business when it was in government, because it introduced regulation after regulation. Is not regulation bad for business, and should not the Government—
Budget Resolutions and Economic Situation — House of Commons, 2015-07-14
Topic: Other
John Simon Bercow (Conservative, Centre-right): Order. There is not a formal limit at this stage, but colleagues are being encouraged to stick to eight minutes to give everyone a decent chance of getting in. However, it is up to the hon. Lady at this point.
Thomas Cook: Christi and Bobby Shepherd — House of Commons, 2015-07-14
Topic: Domestic Commerce
Tracey Elizabeth Anne Crouch (Conservative, Centre-right): I was just about to say that we need to keep this issue under constant review. There is no room for complacency. Although the Government do not think that there is a need to amend the primary legislation at the moment, there is a strong case for considering how effectively the laws are enforced As the hon. Lady pointed out, ABTA and its partners have long campaigned on this issue. I can tell her and the House that, as a direct response to this debate, I will be meeting ABTA and the industry to ensure that it fully understands its duty of care to consumers. It is imperative that the sector commits itself to upholding best practice, from industry suppliers all the way to the end user—the customer I hope that the appointment of Justin King, who has been tasked with the responsibility of leading an internal review of Thomas Cook’s customer health, safety, welfare, relations and crisis management practices, will mark the beginning of a healing process between the family of Bobby and Christi and the holiday operator Now that the relevant criminal proceedings and verdicts have been considered, I urge tourism operators across the UK to reflect on the lessons learned and to be ever vigilant. The safety of tourists, both here and abroad, must come before all other concerns. I will reinforce that message to the industry in the coming months, and I hope that the hon. Lady will support the Government in this work, which will protect the safety of future tourists and honour the memory of Bobby and Christi Shepherd.
Vehicle Emissions Regulation — House of Commons, 2015-10-29
Topic: Mixed Topics
Patrick McLoughlin (Conservative, Centre-right): I will be looking to Volkswagen—which, it has to be said, has acted disgracefully in this whole episode—to ensure that it lives up to the expectations that it promised originally, and we will be working to make sure that that does happen.
Vehicle Emissions Regulation — House of Commons, 2015-10-29
Topic: Other
Patrick McLoughlin (Conservative, Centre-right): I certainly do agree with my hon. Friend. When I appeared before the Select Committee a few weeks ago, I made that position abundantly clear. The progress we made yesterday is progress in the right direction.
Great Western Main Line — House of Commons, 2015-10-29
Topic: Mixed Topics
Patrick McLoughlin (Conservative, Centre-right): We have made money—£125 million—available to the Welsh Assembly. I have met Edwina Hart to discuss this programme, and I am also in regular contact with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales. It is, however, for the Welsh Assembly to come forward with its plans.
Plymouth Airport — House of Commons, 2015-10-29
Topic: Mixed Topics
Oliver Newton Colvile (Conservative, Centre-right): As my hon. Friend knows, Plymouth will be the focus of global attention in five years when, during the Mayflower 2020 celebrations, we commemorate the date the Mayflower set sail to found the American colonies. Does my hon. Friend agree that if these celebrations are to be a major tourism success, it is important that people can get to Plymouth, and that this means improved roads and railways and better air links?
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2015-10-29
Topic: Mixed Topics
Questions: Figures released by the Department show that the Severn bridge is currently generating about £78 million-worth of profit over and above the cost of maintenance of that bridge. Does that not go to prove that as soon as it goes back into public ownership on 1 April 2018, there is a great opportunity for this Government to slash the tolls on the bridge—bring it down to under £1 per car —and still have enough money to pay for the maintenance of it?
Patrick McLoughlin (Conservative, Centre-right): I will make inquiries into what my right hon. Friend has just informed me about. I do not know about the specific case, but I can assure him that I will do by later on today. He is absolutely right about the need to improve the rolling stock availability and that is one of the things I hope the invitation to tender on the line will do.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2015-10-29
Topic: Mixed Topics
Questions: Figures released by the Department show that the Severn bridge is currently generating about £78 million-worth of profit over and above the cost of maintenance of that bridge. Does that not go to prove that as soon as it goes back into public ownership on 1 April 2018, there is a great opportunity for this Government to slash the tolls on the bridge—bring it down to under £1 per car —and still have enough money to pay for the maintenance of it?; Rail commuter routes into Manchester are soon to lose trains to London Midland, raising memories of the TransPennine Express rolling stock debacle, which cost taxpayers £20 million and led to some services being downgraded. The Secretary of State had the opportunity to prevent the loss of TransPennine trains, but he chose not to use it. Did he have a similar option in the latest case? Is not this yet another example of fragmented railways letting passengers down?; The Sheffield city region, now strengthened by Derbyshire Dales, is a real hub for manufacturing in the rail industry. Does the Secretary of State agree that this presents a real opportunity for forward planning to get the manufacturing companies together to prepare bids for HS2?; The port of Newport is the second largest steel handling port in the United Kingdom and it is likely to suffer grievously from the current steel closures. What has the Minister done to assess the consequential job losses in transport and elsewhere as a result of the Government’s neglect of the steel industry? Will he persuade his right hon. Friend the Prime Minister to end his policy of gifting British jobs to Chinese workers?
Robert Goodwill (Conservative, Centre-right): As the Minister with responsibility for ports, I am all too aware of their importance in getting exports out of our country and getting imports in. Yesterday I was at the port of Bristol, which is going to benefit from developments in the nuclear industry, which will be partly financed by the Chinese, and I am going to Felixstowe later today to see the developments there.