argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Jobs and Investment — House of Commons, 2021-10-27
Topic: Mixed Topics
Conor Burns (Conservative, Centre-right): The Prime Minister has been very clear that our levelling-up ambitions are not about points on a compass but about people and communities throughout the United Kingdom, including Northern Ireland. We are delivering for Northern Ireland through our plan for jobs, our £600 million city and growth deal programme, and through the new deal for Northern Ireland, which will fund the promotion of Northern Ireland trade and investment globally.
Jobs and Investment — House of Commons, 2021-10-27
Topic: Domestic Commerce
James Barry Daly (Conservative, Centre-right): Does my right hon. Friend agree that it is vital that, for all the Government’s support for enterprise, innovation and new investment in Northern Ireland, they must not be frustrated and deterred by a second, unnecessary layer of bureaucracy?
Jobs and Investment — House of Commons, 2021-10-27
Topic: Domestic Commerce
Conor Burns (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend is absolutely right. On top of the £400 new deal funding there is a swathe of other funding totalling just over £1 billion to small businesses and communities, delivering trader support new technology and the PEACE PLUS programme. This is the largest investment by any Government in Northern Ireland in decades, and it is warmly welcomed by businesses and communities in Northern Ireland.
Jobs and Investment — House of Commons, 2021-10-27
Topic: Mixed Topics
Robert Joseph Roberts (Conservative, Centre-right): The Liverpool city region and Northern Ireland broadly share the same population of just over 1.5 million. Does the right hon. Gentleman agree that, just as Liverpool can benefit from all the economic benefits of a freeport zone, there is no reason why we cannot extend that across the whole of Northern Ireland—and, indeed, across the whole of north Wales—so that we are not just limited to 45 km, and the whole of the UK can benefit from this excellent economic plan?
Jobs and Investment — House of Commons, 2021-10-27
Topic: Domestic Commerce
Conor Burns (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Gentleman is a huge champion of that project. We are well aware of the proposals that are being worked up, and I understand that the Executive and Tourism Northern Ireland are looking at them. If they come forward with proposals that work they will find a willing partner in the Northern Ireland Office. I will not commit to how many wheels or what part of the vehicles we will pay for, but we will step up to help to make this project a reality.
Jobs and Investment — House of Commons, 2021-10-27
Topic: Mixed Topics
Conor Burns (Conservative, Centre-right): I entirely agree with my hon. Friend the Chairman of the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee and that is why the Secretary of State and I were both at this Dispatch Box yesterday for Report and Third Reading of the Northern Ireland (Ministers, Elections and Petitions of Concern) Bill, a vital tool agreed under New Decade, New Approach to provide enhanced stability to the institutions in Northern Ireland, but ultimately it is for the parties in Northern Ireland to work together to deliver for the people of Northern Ireland.
Agricultural Labour — House of Commons, 2021-10-27
Topic: Mixed Topics
Questions: What assessment he has made of the availability of agricultural labour in Northern Ireland and its impact on the profitability and viability of that sector.
Conor Burns (Conservative, Centre-right): We are moving to a high-wage, high-skilled economy and the Government are encouraging all sectors to rely increasingly on workers from the United Kingdom, but we have listened to the concerns of the sector and 5,500 poultry workers are now eligible to enter the UK for work, on top of the 800 butchers who were already eligible to enter the UK for six months under the skilled worker route.
Agricultural Labour — House of Commons, 2021-10-27
Topic: Domestic Commerce
Questions: What assessment he has made of the availability of agricultural labour in Northern Ireland and its impact on the profitability and viability of that sector.
Conor Burns (Conservative, Centre-right): My right hon. Friend the former Secretary of State speaks with great authority on these matters. There has been extensive engagement with the sector. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State and I had engagements around the Balmoral Show recently. We have both visited businesses in this sector and are listening carefully to their concerns.
New Decade, New Approach — House of Commons, 2021-10-27
Topic: Mixed Topics
Conor Burns (Conservative, Centre-right): The Government are making good progress across their commitments under New Decade, New Approach. As the hon. Gentleman will know, only yesterday, the Secretary of State and I were delivering on the Northern Ireland (Ministers, Elections and Petitions of Concern) Bill from the Dispatch Box while he was enjoying his love-in with the hon. Member for North Antrim (Ian Paisley).
New Decade, New Approach — House of Commons, 2021-10-27
Topic: Mixed Topics
Conor Burns (Conservative, Centre-right): The commitment of the Government to bring forward that package remains undimmed. I would not want to deny the hon. Gentleman his anticipation and excitement by revealing exactly when, but he will not have long to wait.
Engagements — House of Commons, 2021-10-27
Topic: Mixed Topics
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (Conservative, Centre-right): I thought we were not going to have any partisan points. That did not last long. Actually, one of the first things I did as Prime Minister was go out to my first United Nations General Assembly as Prime Minister and announce a huge £11.6 billion commitment from the UK to help the developed world to tackle climate change. I say to the right hon. Gentleman, yes, of course it is true— [Interruption.] We have not cut that; we have not cut that, Mr Speaker. We are keeping that investment Let me tell the right hon. Gentleman that this country is working flat out to ensure that we do reach the £100 billion commitment from the whole of the world. We are seeing the money come in from the United States, from the Italians, from the French and from the European Union, and it is quite right that it should. We have a way to go. Whether we will get there or not, I cannot say—it is in the balance—but the challenge is there for the leaders of the developed world. I quite agree with the right hon. Gentleman that they need to rise to it.
Engagements — House of Commons, 2021-10-27
Topic: Immigration
Questions: The Prime Minister will know that my hon. Friend the Member for Wolverhampton South West (Stuart Anderson) and I have both lobbied for funding for better training and skills provision for young people in Wolverhampton. The youth unemployment rate was unacceptably high pre-pandemic; now, sadly, it is the highest rate nationally. Will the Prime Minister urgently look at how the Government can level up opportunity so that young people in Wolverhampton can get the skills and the confidence that they need to find work?
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (Conservative, Centre-right): Just to get to the right hon. Gentleman’s point—while he rather uncivilly calls out—what we are insisting on is safe passage for those who wish to come and settle in this country, for people to whom we owe an obligation, and that is what we are doing.
Budget Resolutions — House of Commons, 2021-10-27
Topic: Other
Eleanor Fulton Laing (Conservative, Centre-right): At this point I would normally call the Leader of the Opposition to respond to the Chancellor’s statement. As Mr Speaker announced earlier, the Leader of the Opposition is sadly isolating—we all wish him a speedy recovery—and therefore, to answer on behalf of the Opposition, I call the shadow Chancellor, Rachel Reeves.
Budget Resolutions — House of Commons, 2021-10-27
Topic: Other
Eleanor Fulton Laing (Conservative, Centre-right): I hope we can manage the rest of today’s debate without a formal time limit. We have plenty of time, but a great many people wish to contribute. If everyone were to keep to around seven to eight minutes, which is much longer than we have had recently, we will manage without a time limit. That always makes for a much better-flowing debate.
Budget Resolutions — House of Commons, 2021-10-27
Topic: Housing
Kevin Paul Hollinrake (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Lady mentions having read the Red Book and says there is no new money for housing, but the Red Book announces "an additional £1.8 billion for housing supply" and for the regeneration of brownfield land; is that not new money?
Budget Resolutions — House of Commons, 2021-10-27
Topic: Other
Nigel Martin Evans (Conservative, Centre-right): Order. I remind everybody that Dame Eleanor suggested contributions of between seven and eight minutes in order that people lower down the list will get fairly equal time as well. Mr Grayling, you did that—congratulations—but the average is 11 minutes, so please could people be a little bit more conscious of the timing of their contributions?
Budget Resolutions — House of Commons, 2021-10-27
Topic: Housing
Edward Julian Egerton Leigh (Conservative, Centre-right): I want to say a fantastic big thank you to my right hon. Friend personally, because it has just been announced this minute that Gainsborough is getting £10 million of levelling-up funds. I relentlessly lobbied him on this, and I have lobbied his successor, so a big thank you!
Budget Resolutions — House of Commons, 2021-10-27
Topic: Mixed Topics
Anthony Howe Browne (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Lady agreed with the point made by the right hon. Member for Kingston and Surbiton (Ed Davey) on bank taxation. Does she agree that 28 is higher than 27? The corporation tax rate on banks is currently 27%, and after the rise in corporation tax and the change to the bank corporation tax surcharge it will be 28%. By anyone’s reckoning that is an increase in taxation on banks, not a decrease.
Budget Resolutions — House of Commons, 2021-10-27
Topic: Domestic Commerce
Adam Afriyie (Conservative, Centre-right): I commend my hon. Friend for his speech. He is making a wonderfully nuanced exposition of the benefits of pubs and local hospitality businesses to an area, both in terms of charities and of contributing socially to a community. The Windsor constituency is dependent on hospitality and the whole constituency breathed a sigh of relief with the measures in the Budget, because it is clear they hit home when it comes to supporting those hospitality businesses and pubs, which are at the heart of our local communities. Like him, I very much commend the Chancellor’s words today and, in particular, those measures that support those smaller businesses.
Budget Resolutions — House of Commons, 2021-10-27
Topic: Mixed Topics
Mark James Harper (Conservative, Centre-right): Let me make a little more progress, then I will of course give way to my right hon. Friend I thank the Chancellor for agreeing to the levelling-up bid made by my constituents. It was a partnership bid by Hartpury University and Hartpury College, Forest of Dean District Council and Cinderford Town Council, and it focuses very much on improving opportunities for my constituents. They worked collaboratively with me and my office, which put me in a strong position to make the case to Ministers, including the Chancellor, and it got us a really good result today. This was a real Forest team effort. Does my right hon. Friend still wish to intervene on me?
Budget Resolutions — House of Commons, 2021-10-27
Topic: Domestic Commerce
Kevin Paul Hollinrake (Conservative, Centre-right): Well, I am happy to have a debate. Perhaps the hon. Gentleman should think about what I am saying, rather than simply ruling it out. It would create a fair and level playing field, it would raise the same amount, and it would mean online retailers trading in exactly the same way as physical retailers. It would be a simple solution to a very thorny problem I sympathise with the Treasury, because this is not easy. To my mind, the Opposition solution is totally unworkable.
Israel: Trade Co-operation — House of Commons, 2021-12-02
Topic: Mixed Topics
Scott Lloyd Benton (Conservative, Centre-right): As the Prime Minister rightly said on Monday, our close co-operation with Israel on security, science and technology benefits not only our two respective nations, but the entire world. Does my right hon. Friend agree that the new strategic agreement signed between the UK and Israel will further enhance those ties over the next decade, and will she update the House on when we can expect the consultation period for the new bilateral free trade deal to begin?
Israel: Trade Co-operation — House of Commons, 2021-12-02
Topic: Mixed Topics
Anne-Marie Belinda Trevelyan (Conservative, Centre-right): As I said, we will be hosting a joint innovation summit in March with our Israeli friends in those areas of research and development, as mentioned by the hon. Gentleman. How we can work together between our universities is very much on our list of priorities, and I am also working closely with the Secretary of State for Education to ensure that we link in the international relationships that we want to grow with Israel.
Labour Shortages: Exports and Imports — House of Commons, 2021-12-02
Topic: Mixed Topics
Ranil Malcolm Jayawardena (Conservative, Centre-right): Again, this is International Trade questions, but I am happy to provide an answer on behalf of the Government. We are putting significant resources into training people up to develop our domestic workforce. My understanding is that many people are very keen to find a new job potentially in a new industry. This Government will help them to do that.
Foreign Investment: South Yorkshire — House of Commons, 2021-12-02
Topic: Mixed Topics
Nicholas Anthony Fletcher (Conservative, Centre-right): I have spoken to national and international companies about investment in Doncaster, mainly at two sites: DN7 at Thorne and GatewayEast around Doncaster Sheffield airport. I even personally managed to secure a visit to Doncaster from Apple’s UK representative; it was fantastic for him to come up. What steps has the Department taken to encourage international companies to invest in Doncaster?
Foreign Investment: South Yorkshire — House of Commons, 2021-12-02
Topic: Mixed Topics
Michael Whitney Freer (Conservative, Centre-right): We have invested heavily and are building close relationships with the Mayor and the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority to support investment into the region. Details of capital investment projects such as GatewayEast will soon be added to the investment atlas that was published as part of the global investment summit.
Trade Deals: Environmental Standards — House of Commons, 2021-12-02
Topic: Mixed Topics
Michael Jon Wood (Conservative, Centre-right): The UK-Australia agreement in principle marked the first time that Australia had ever agreed to a specific reference to the Paris agreement in a free trade agreement. Does my hon. Friend agree that trade is an effective way of encouraging other countries to bring their environmental protection standards up to the high levels of our own?
Trade Deals: Environmental Standards — House of Commons, 2021-12-02
Topic: Mixed Topics
Ranil Malcolm Jayawardena (Conservative, Centre-right): I commend my hon. Friend for his research. He is absolutely right: this is an important part of our wider diplomacy. Economic diplomacy is crucial to making sure that we spread British values around the world, including protections for the environment. As economies develop, they will of course want to seek the technologies that we have in this country to decarbonise and improve the quality of life for their people, too.
New Zealand Trade Agreement — House of Commons, 2021-12-02
Topic: Mixed Topics
Questions: What assessment her Department has made of the potential impact on UK farmers and crofters of the planned UK trade agreement with New Zealand.
Penelope Mary Mordaunt (Conservative, Centre-right): There are certainly opportunities through that to grow the market further still. I also think that we have to dispel some myths. It is not the case that the market is going to be flooded with New Zealand lamb. New Zealand already has tariff-free access through its WTO quota, of which it uses only half, so it is not the case that those things are going to come to pass. There are some massive opportunities and it is those opportunities that we need to focus on.
Exports: Financial Services — House of Commons, 2021-12-02
Topic: Mixed Topics
Robert Andrew Raymond Syms (Conservative, Centre-right): Financial services are so important to our economy, providing high-paid jobs and earning a substantial amount of revenue. We have done really well on our trade deals and it is vital that financial services are an important factor when we secure them. Will the Minister assure me that that is first and foremost in the Government’s mind?
Aluminium Extrusions — House of Commons, 2021-12-02
Topic: Mixed Topics
Penelope Mary Mordaunt (Conservative, Centre-right): I am afraid that, as I alluded to, I cannot comment on the investigation or its potential outcome. The TRA is carrying out its work methodically and thoroughly. I encourage the hon. Lady to ensure that the businesses in her constituency that have an interest in the issue make representations to the TRA. I am sure she is encouraging them to do so, and that evidence is critical in ensuring that we get the right outcome. I will undertake to keep her up to date as things progress.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2021-12-02
Topic: Mixed Topics
Anne-Marie Belinda Trevelyan (Conservative, Centre-right): We have been world leading throughout the pandemic in our negotiations with AstraZeneca on ensuring that vaccines are produced at cost. When I was Secretary of State for International Development, I made sure we invested in COVAX so that we led the way and brought other countries forward to ensure that as much vaccine as can be made gets to those who need it the most. Countries are continuing to work with the smallest and most vulnerable developing countries so they get the vaccines they need. We continue to have discussions on a waiver to the World Trade Organisation agreement on trade-related aspects of intellectual property rights, although those discussions were postponed this week due to the complexity of omicron and movement. We will pick up those discussions in the new year.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2021-12-02
Topic: Mixed Topics
Questions: Earlier this year, in partnership with Google, I arranged a digital course to train and upskill service sector businesses across Rother Valley. Will my right hon. Friend set out how our trade deals, including the recently announced New Zealand trade deal, support the service sector, 70% of which is based outside London and some of which is based in Rother Valley?; National Farmers Union Scotland says the Australian trade deal is“a slow journey to the Australians getting unfettered access to UK markets and with no guarantees that the promises of other safeguards will address the fact that very different production systems are permitted in Australia”.When was the last time the Department involved officials from the Scottish Government and Scottish farming representatives in the negotiation of future free trade deals?; I was recently fortunate enough to visit the DP World London Gateway container port in my constituency to hear about its exciting plans—its commitment to the construction of a fourth berth, and its ambition to become the largest container port in the UK and to use the opportunities that freeport status brings. Will the Minister update the House on what the Department is doing to support freeports and promote UK exporters?; Last weekend, we saw the release of the Xinjiang papers, highlighting how human rights atrocities go right to the heart of the Chinese Government. As a result, I want to ask what steps is the Minister taking to review our trading relationship with China, because it cannot be business as usual?; With the exponential growth in offshore wind, including off the East Anglian coast, where 50% of the UK’s wind farms are located, world-class knowledge and skills have developed and the UK is now a global leader. Will my right hon. Friend outline the steps that are taken in negotiating trade deals to both promote this expertise abroad and attract inward investment into the UK offshore wind sector?
Penelope Mary Mordaunt (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank my hon. Friend for highlighting that trade in itself is a force for good in the world, as well as having environmental chapters in trade deals. One example of that is our free trade agreement with New Zealand, which will include the most comprehensive environmental list of goods with liberalised tariffs in a free trade agreement to date. He is right to point to the technology being developed in the UK, which can provide solutions for nations around the world, whether they are developed or developing nations, to meet net zero.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2021-12-02
Topic: Mixed Topics
Questions: Earlier this year, in partnership with Google, I arranged a digital course to train and upskill service sector businesses across Rother Valley. Will my right hon. Friend set out how our trade deals, including the recently announced New Zealand trade deal, support the service sector, 70% of which is based outside London and some of which is based in Rother Valley?; National Farmers Union Scotland says the Australian trade deal is“a slow journey to the Australians getting unfettered access to UK markets and with no guarantees that the promises of other safeguards will address the fact that very different production systems are permitted in Australia”.When was the last time the Department involved officials from the Scottish Government and Scottish farming representatives in the negotiation of future free trade deals?; I was recently fortunate enough to visit the DP World London Gateway container port in my constituency to hear about its exciting plans—its commitment to the construction of a fourth berth, and its ambition to become the largest container port in the UK and to use the opportunities that freeport status brings. Will the Minister update the House on what the Department is doing to support freeports and promote UK exporters?; Last weekend, we saw the release of the Xinjiang papers, highlighting how human rights atrocities go right to the heart of the Chinese Government. As a result, I want to ask what steps is the Minister taking to review our trading relationship with China, because it cannot be business as usual?; With the exponential growth in offshore wind, including off the East Anglian coast, where 50% of the UK’s wind farms are located, world-class knowledge and skills have developed and the UK is now a global leader. Will my right hon. Friend outline the steps that are taken in negotiating trade deals to both promote this expertise abroad and attract inward investment into the UK offshore wind sector?
Ranil Malcolm Jayawardena (Conservative, Centre-right): Every year, we break down barriers across the world, and this year there has been a 20% increase in the number of barriers that we have broken down, benefiting businesses across the whole of our United Kingdom—in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. We look forward to continuing this work to generate more jobs for people across our country in the years ahead.