argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2018-11-21
Topic: Law and Crime
Questions: Climatic change is one of the biggest challenges facing humanity. What are the Government doing to protect the world’s poorest? Will they make it a top priority?; Earlier this month, I visited Kenya as part of the armed forces parliamentary scheme and heard from the defence support there about the work it is doing to tackle al-Shabaab. How is the Department working with the Ministry of Defence to promote peace and prosperity?; In the light of yesterday’s horrifying revelations of children being beaten, tortured and starved in Libyan detention centres to which they have been returned after trying to cross the Mediterranean, will the Government increase the number of safe and legal routes to sanctuary using refugee resettlement?; Can the Secretary of State update the House on the UK’s contribution to eliminating polio around the world, and will she join me in welcoming the efforts of Bramhall and Woodford Rotary through its Purple4Polio fundraising campaign?; The Secretary of State might be aware that the greatest killer of children and young people in our world is road accidents and the attendant serious injuries. Could we put more money into partnership working with the United Nations and the World Health Organisation to tackle this problem?; Over 160 British parliamentarians have called on the UK Government to refer the Burmese military to the International Criminal Court. Does the Secretary of State agree that unless we hold them to account for their genocidal intent, it will be impossible to return the Rohingya from Bangladesh to Burma without risking further atrocities?
Penelope Mary Mordaunt (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Lady is absolutely right. As I said earlier, we continue to consider all means of holding people to account for these appalling atrocities. As well as other measures, including the recognition of citizens’ rights, justice is a major part of giving people the confidence to return.
Engagements — House of Commons, 2018-11-21
Topic: International Affairs
Andrew Richard Rosindell (Conservative, Centre-right): The Prime Minister will know that what drives me in politics has always been a love of country and a passionate belief in our United Kingdom, so I have to tell the Prime Minister that I agree with the people of Romford. They are deeply unhappy about the proposed EU deal, which they believe does not represent the Brexit for which they voted. Will the Prime Minister now please think again, even at this late stage, and instead lead our country in a new direction, completely cutting away the tentacles of the EU from our cherished island nation once and for all?
Engagements — House of Commons, 2018-11-21
Topic: International Affairs
Theresa Mary May (Conservative, Centre-right): No. I have consistently been clear on this point. The point that has been made by a number of my colleagues in relation to the vote that will come before the House—a meaningful vote on a deal from the European Union—is very simple. If we look at the alternative to that deal with the European Union, we see that it will either be more uncertainty and more division, or it could risk no Brexit at all.
Engagements — House of Commons, 2018-11-21
Topic: International Affairs
Theresa Mary May (Conservative, Centre-right): I have to say to the right hon. Gentleman that he will not get any different answers on this than he has had from me previously. There are two parts to the deal package we are negotiating with the European Union: the leaving part, which is the withdrawal agreement; and the future relationship, which is what is continuing to be negotiated with the European Union. They go together as a package. Yes, the withdrawal agreement has been agreed in principle. The whole package will be what is brought before this House and will be what is considered at the European Union Council on Sunday, and we continue to negotiate on that future relationship to get the good deal that we believe is right for the United Kingdom: a good deal that protects jobs, protects our Union and protects our security.
Engagements — House of Commons, 2018-11-21
Topic: International Affairs
Theresa Mary May (Conservative, Centre-right): No, the right hon. Gentleman is wrong on that. Let us just remind ourselves what we are talking about: we are talking about the guarantee to the people of Northern Ireland that there will be no hard border between Northern Ireland and Ireland. First of all, that is best ensured by getting the future relationship in place by the end of December 2020. In the event that that was not the case for a temporary period and an interim arrangement was in place, the choice the right hon. Gentleman set out is not the choice that would be before us. Yes, there will be the backstop in the protocol and, yes, there will be the extension of the implementation period, but what we have also negotiated in the withdrawal agreement is that alternative arrangements could be in place; the key is that they guarantee no hard border between Northern Ireland and Ireland.
Engagements — House of Commons, 2018-11-21
Topic: International Affairs
Theresa Mary May (Conservative, Centre-right): The future relationship that we are negotiating will set out the structure and scope of that deal, which we will be ensuring we can negotiate in legal text once we leave the European Union, but I think people will have seen from the right hon. Gentleman’s question to me previously the problem he has with this deal: he has not even read it; he does not know what is in it. He says there is a problem with the deal and he would do it differently, he wants to renegotiate the withdrawal agreement but has not read it, and he wants to oppose any deal no matter how good it is for the UK but he will accept any European Union deal no matter how bad it is for the UK. And then he wants to use the implementation period that he would vote against to renegotiate the treaty that delivers the implementation period. And he has said that another referendum is not an issue for today, but it could be an issue for tomorrow. He does not know how he would vote; he does not know when it would be; he does not even know what the question would be. That is not leadership; that is playing party politics. I am working in the national interest.
Engagements — House of Commons, 2018-11-21
Topic: International Affairs
Theresa Mary May (Conservative, Centre-right): I have to say to the right hon. Gentleman that it would not create exactly that. From February until the last few weeks, the European Union said that the only answer was a Northern Ireland-only customs territory in relation to the guarantee to the people of Northern Ireland. We argued and we resisted. We made it clear that we would not accept the position of the European Union, and a few weeks ago they agreed with our position. They conceded to the United Kingdom, so that there will not be a customs border down the Irish sea. It is becoming even clearer that the right hon. Gentleman does not actually know what is in the withdrawal agreement, the protocol or the outline political declaration. Never mind a second referendum; he has not got a first clue.
Engagements — House of Commons, 2018-11-21
Topic: International Affairs
Theresa Mary May (Conservative, Centre-right): The right hon. Gentleman is playing party politics. He is opposing a deal that he has not read. He is promising a deal that he cannot negotiate. He is telling leave voters one thing and remain voters another. Whatever he might do, I will act in the national interest.
Engagements — House of Commons, 2018-11-21
Topic: International Affairs
Questions: I am a great supporter of the Prime Minister and, along with the British people, I accept what a difficult and tough job she has. There is much in the withdrawal agreement that I agree with, especially on food and farming, but it is not good enough as it stands. The Northern Ireland backstop threatens the integrity of the United Kingdom and weakens our negotiating position, and my farming instincts tell me that we should not hand over £39 billion before we get the deal. Please will the Prime Minister listen to these concerns and renegotiate the deal before we put it before the House?
Theresa Mary May (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend mentions the issue of paying over money to the European Union. As I have consistently said—and as I hope I indicated in my first answer to the Leader of the Opposition—nothing is agreed until everything is agreed, and we remain in negotiations on the future framework. In relation to the £39 billion—which I remind my hon. Friend is significantly less than the £100 billion the European Union was first talking about us needing to pay—this is about the United Kingdom’s legal obligations. I hope that every Member of this House will recognise that the United Kingdom is a country that meets its legal obligations.
Engagements — House of Commons, 2018-11-21
Topic: International Affairs
Questions: I am a great supporter of the Prime Minister and, along with the British people, I accept what a difficult and tough job she has. There is much in the withdrawal agreement that I agree with, especially on food and farming, but it is not good enough as it stands. The Northern Ireland backstop threatens the integrity of the United Kingdom and weakens our negotiating position, and my farming instincts tell me that we should not hand over £39 billion before we get the deal. Please will the Prime Minister listen to these concerns and renegotiate the deal before we put it before the House?
Theresa Mary May (Conservative, Centre-right): The right hon. Gentleman says, "Let us all work together", but the position that he and his party have would frustrate the vote of the British people in relation to leaving the European Union. He talks about protecting jobs, and that is exactly what the deal we are proposing does. He also talks about listening. Perhaps the SNP should listen to the people of Scotland, who gave a very clear view that Scotland should remain in its most important economic market: the internal market of the United Kingdom.
Engagements — House of Commons, 2018-11-21
Topic: Law and Crime
Questions: I am a great supporter of the Prime Minister and, along with the British people, I accept what a difficult and tough job she has. There is much in the withdrawal agreement that I agree with, especially on food and farming, but it is not good enough as it stands. The Northern Ireland backstop threatens the integrity of the United Kingdom and weakens our negotiating position, and my farming instincts tell me that we should not hand over £39 billion before we get the deal. Please will the Prime Minister listen to these concerns and renegotiate the deal before we put it before the House?; Twenty-year-old Tommy Cowan and 18-year-old Georgia Jones, both from Havant, were sold ecstasy at a music festival and tragically lost their lives afterwards. As the inquest continues, will my right hon. Friend set out the work being done to tackle the drug dealers who prey on our young people, and will she join me in sending the condolences of the whole House to their families and friends?
Theresa Mary May (Conservative, Centre-right): I am sure that all Members on both sides of the House will want to join me in offering our deepest condolences to the families of Georgia Jones and Tommy Cowan after their tragic deaths. As my hon. Friend knows, drugs can devastate lives, ruin families and damage communities. Our comprehensive drugs strategy sets out a balanced approach that brings together the police, the health community and global partners to tackle the illicit drugs trade and protect the most vulnerable in our society, and tough enforcement is a fundamental part of that. We are taking a smarter approach to restricting supply, adapting our approach to reflect changes in criminal activity, using innovative data and technology, and taking co-ordinated partnership action to tackle drugs alongside other criminal activity. The National Crime Agency has a key role in dealing with the terrible aspect of drugs that can cause so much harm to people, but of course there is more that we need to do to prevent harm and tragic deaths, such as those of Georgia and Tommy.
Engagements — House of Commons, 2018-11-21
Topic: Education
Questions: I am a great supporter of the Prime Minister and, along with the British people, I accept what a difficult and tough job she has. There is much in the withdrawal agreement that I agree with, especially on food and farming, but it is not good enough as it stands. The Northern Ireland backstop threatens the integrity of the United Kingdom and weakens our negotiating position, and my farming instincts tell me that we should not hand over £39 billion before we get the deal. Please will the Prime Minister listen to these concerns and renegotiate the deal before we put it before the House?; Twenty-year-old Tommy Cowan and 18-year-old Georgia Jones, both from Havant, were sold ecstasy at a music festival and tragically lost their lives afterwards. As the inquest continues, will my right hon. Friend set out the work being done to tackle the drug dealers who prey on our young people, and will she join me in sending the condolences of the whole House to their families and friends?; Over the past three weeks, I have surveyed 42 schools in my Weaver Vale constituency. More than £3.4 million will be taken from their budgets, and 60% of those schools have cut staff. The Prime Minister’s claim that austerity is over is as credible as her Brexit plan. Will she get a grip or step aside?
Theresa Mary May (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Gentleman will know that we are putting extra money into school funding; he will know that we have changed the national funding formula to make it fairer across the country; and I would hope he welcomes the fact that in the north-west we now see over 895,000 children in good or outstanding schools—an increase of over 175,000 children since 2010. He focuses on the money going into schools; he also needs to look at school outcomes, at the excellent work being done by our teachers and at the children who are now in good or outstanding schools who were not in good or outstanding schools under the last Labour Government.
Engagements — House of Commons, 2018-11-21
Topic: International Affairs
Questions: I am a great supporter of the Prime Minister and, along with the British people, I accept what a difficult and tough job she has. There is much in the withdrawal agreement that I agree with, especially on food and farming, but it is not good enough as it stands. The Northern Ireland backstop threatens the integrity of the United Kingdom and weakens our negotiating position, and my farming instincts tell me that we should not hand over £39 billion before we get the deal. Please will the Prime Minister listen to these concerns and renegotiate the deal before we put it before the House?; Twenty-year-old Tommy Cowan and 18-year-old Georgia Jones, both from Havant, were sold ecstasy at a music festival and tragically lost their lives afterwards. As the inquest continues, will my right hon. Friend set out the work being done to tackle the drug dealers who prey on our young people, and will she join me in sending the condolences of the whole House to their families and friends?; Over the past three weeks, I have surveyed 42 schools in my Weaver Vale constituency. More than £3.4 million will be taken from their budgets, and 60% of those schools have cut staff. The Prime Minister’s claim that austerity is over is as credible as her Brexit plan. Will she get a grip or step aside?; Will my right hon. Friend join me in welcoming Debbie Pritchard, a specialist teacher from Harlow who is visiting us for #AskHerToStand day and is watching from the Public Gallery? Does my right hon. Friend agree that it is a question not just of getting more women into Parliament but of encouraging women from all walks of life, especially from disadvantaged, low-income and working-class backgrounds? Does she support initiatives by the Conservative Party Foundation such as the Conservative candidate bursary scheme to enable more women to access public life?; The Prime Minister has just repeated that voting down her deal risks there being no Brexit at all. Does she recognise that, far from being a risk, recent polls show that, actually, a vast majority of people would like no Brexit at all in order to save jobs, protect the environment and ensure our standing in the world? Will she acknowledge that the will of the people can change and that the will of the people has changed? Does she therefore think that the way forward is a people’s vote, or does she think democracy ended on 23 June 2016?
Theresa Mary May (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Lady’s claim in relation to democracy is absolutely ridiculous. This Parliament gave people the right to choose whether to remain in the European Union or to leave the European Union. People exercised that vote, and we saw numbers of people voting that we had not seen before. It was a great exercise in democracy in this country, and I believe it gave this Parliament an instruction. We should ensure that we leave the European Union, as the people voted.
Points of Order — House of Commons, 2018-11-21
Topic: Government Operations
John Simon Bercow (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank the hon. Gentleman for giving me notice that he wished to raise this matter as a point of order. Moreover, I think it fair to say, and I doubt anybody will demur as I do so, that no one could accuse him of excluding from his point of order any matter that he thought might in any way, at any time and to any degree be judged to be material. I have no comment to make on his observations about the Procedure Committee’s deliberations on time limits. Moreover, what he said on other matters—for example, tedious repetition—was unexceptionable, and there is no need for me to add to it However, on the main point that I think the hon. Gentleman wished to register with the House, let me say that I fully share his concern about this matter. Many right hon. and hon. Members, and observers outside the House, will agree with him that it is frankly archaic that our Standing Orders use gendered pronouns. It is deeply unsatisfactory that the revisions to the Standing Orders proposed by the Clerk and recommended by the Procedure Committee in March 2015 have still not been brought to the House for decision. I would very much like to expedite these changes, but, as the hon. Gentleman will know, this does not lie in my hands. I would encourage him to pursue the matter with the Leader of the House at business questions, and perhaps also to urge his colleagues on the Opposition Front Bench to press, through the usual channels, for action. Meanwhile, I hope that his concern, which I have reiterated I share, has been noted by those on the Treasury Bench.
Yemen — House of Commons, 2018-11-21
Topic: International Affairs
Jeremy Richard Streynsham Hunt (Conservative, Centre-right): I am grateful to the right hon. Lady for raising this vital issue. The conflict in Yemen has escalated to become one of the worst humanitarian disasters in the world. Today, 8 million people—nearly a third of the population—depend on United Nations food aid. Starvation and disease have taken hold across the country. More than 420,000 children have been treated for malnutrition and 1.2 million people have suffered from a cholera epidemic. In total, about 22 million people across Yemen—nearly 80% of the population—are in need of help. Yet the bare statistics cannot convey the enormity of this tragedy. What we are witnessing is a man-made humanitarian catastrophe, inflicted by a conflict that has raged for too long Britain is one of the biggest donors of emergency aid, providing £170 million of help to Yemen this year, which brings our total support to £570 million since 2015. But the only solution is for all the parties to set aside their arms, cease missile and air attacks on populated areas and pursue a peaceful political settlement. Last week, I conveyed this message to the leaders of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, which lead the coalition fighting to restore Yemen’s legitimate Government, when I visited both countries. On Monday, I said the same in Tehran to the Foreign Minister of Iran, which backs the Houthi rebels On the same day, I instructed our mission at the United Nations to circulate a draft resolution to the Security Council urging a "durable cessation of hostilities" throughout Hodeidah province and calling on the parties to "cease all attacks on densely populated civilian areas across Yemen" This draft resolution also requires the unhindered flow of food and medicine, and all other forms of aid, "across the country". The aim of this UK-sponsored resolution is to relieve the immediate humanitarian crisis and maximise the chances of achieving a political settlement. Martin Griffiths, the UN envoy, is planning to gather all the parties for peace talks in Sweden in the next few weeks Amid this tragedy, the House will have noticed some encouraging signs. Last week, Saudi Arabia and the UAE paused their operation in Hodeidah, although there was a further outbreak of fighting yesterday. The Houthi rebels have publicly promised to cease their missile attacks on Saudi Arabia. Martin Griffiths is meeting all parties as he prepares the ground for the talks in Sweden Britain holds a unique position as the pen holder for Yemen in the Security Council, a leading humanitarian donor and a country with significant influence in the region, so we will make every effort, and use all the diplomatic assets at our command, to support the UN envoy as he seeks to resolve a crisis that has inflicted such terrible suffering.
Yemen — House of Commons, 2018-11-21
Topic: International Affairs
Jeremy Richard Streynsham Hunt (Conservative, Centre-right): First, I thank the right hon. Lady for the tone of her comments. She is right that this is a humanitarian catastrophe, and what matters in this situation is finding a way forward. I will try hard to answer her questions. The important thing about the resolution we are proposing is not that this is the end of the story in terms of international efforts to broker a ceasefire, but that it is a step on the road. We want a ceasefire, and we want a ceasefire that will hold. We know that the risk if we go for too much too early with such resolutions is that they end up getting ignored. This is a carefully brokered form of words that is designed to get a consensus from both sides that will allow talks to start before the end of this month in Stockholm—that is the objective of the resolution—and if those talks are successful, we will be able to have a much stronger resolution following them.
Yemen — House of Commons, 2018-11-21
Topic: International Affairs
Jeremy Richard Streynsham Hunt (Conservative, Centre-right): Absolutely, and I will come on to the investigation issue as well, but it is very important at this stage that we have a resolution first that passes and secondly that puts in place things that build confidence on both sides The right hon. Lady asks why the original draft was not pursued. She has been following this issue closely for longer than I have, but my assessment when I arrived in this post was that, tragically, both sides have believed over that period that a military solution is possible, and that is why there has been an unwillingness, at huge cost to the people of Yemen The right hon. Lady mentioned the Save the Children report published today, which I agree is horrific. I found out last week that in the last week for which we have data, 14,000 people caught cholera in Yemen. This situation is escalating out of control. First, the immediate priority in the resolution is to allow the flow of humanitarian aid. Secondly, we need a cessation of hostilities, which will allow trust to be built up, and, thirdly, we need confidence-building measures, which involves allowing, for example, the payment of salaries of civil servants in Yemen and getting foreign currency into the economy In terms of compliance, when this resolution goes through, as I hope it will, the UN will monitor compliance—