argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
European Council — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Immigration
Cheryl Elise Kendall Gillan (Conservative, Centre-right): On migration, on 14 September in a communiqué to the Council the Commission said that we should establish a European travel information and authorisation system by November of this year. Greece is now objecting to the common European asylum system. Where does that leave the proposed agency?
European Council — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Immigration
Theresa Mary May (Conservative, Centre-right): I am happy to say to my right hon. Friend that the European Union has been looking for some time at the proposal for something that it has described as a smart borders system, looking at the model of the system used in the United States. That concerns the security of the EU’s external border. There is a separate issue, namely the arrangements in Greece relating to the asylum system. The Greek Government have made some changes to how they deal with asylum claims in response to the requirements of the EU-Turkey deal.
European Council — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Immigration
Theresa Mary May (Conservative, Centre-right): First of all, as I said in response to the right hon. Member for Doncaster Central (Dame Rosie Winterton), we are looking at the impacts on different parts of the United Kingdom. The premise of the right hon. Gentleman’s question is a false one. He talks about the hard Brexit that the Government are going to take the country into. There is no suggestion of that whatsoever. [Interruption.] The right hon. Gentleman seems to think that all of these matters are binary decisions between either being able to control immigration or having some sort of decent trade arrangements. That is not the case. We are going to be ambitious for what we obtain for the United Kingdom. That means a good trade deal as well as control of immigration.
European Council — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Mixed Topics
Theresa Mary May (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Lady makes an important point. I can inform her that the Treasury is in discussions with the European Investment Bank. We recognise the important role the bank plays and want to ensure that nobody loses out as a result of the decision taken by the British people. Those discussions are ongoing with the European Investment Bank.
European Council — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Immigration
Theresa Mary May (Conservative, Centre-right): I expect to be able to guarantee the status of EU citizens here in the United Kingdom. I intend and want to do that. The only circumstances in which that would not be possible would be if the status of British citizens in the European Union member states was not guaranteed. This is an issue that, as I have said previously, I hope to be able to discuss at an early stage.
European Council — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Immigration
Theresa Mary May (Conservative, Centre-right): The European Union is looking initially at working with a small number of African countries to ensure that support is available to reduce the number of people who wish to move to Europe. The Khartoum process is an important element of the work that is being done. The UK has consistently said that we need to operate upstream. That is about working with source countries, working with the transit countries and dealing with the organised crime groups that are engaged in these horrific crimes of people smuggling and human trafficking which are leading to misery. As I say, the EU is looking at dealing initially with a small number of countries, but of course we recognise that it is difficult to return people to some countries. It is important to accept the principle and start to put into practice the process of working with people upstream.
European Council — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Civil Rights
Theresa Mary May (Conservative, Centre-right): All I would say to my hon. Friend is that, regardless of which side of the debate Members were on before 23 June, we should all accept the voice of the British people and put that into practice.
European Council — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Immigration
Peter William Bone (Conservative, Centre-right): The terrible migration problem that we are currently seeing is largely due to human trafficking gangs. One of the great legacies of the former Prime Minister, and indeed the former Home Secretary, is that we now lead the fight against human trafficking. Does the Prime Minister agree, however, that we must build relationships not just with the European Union but with all European countries if we are to deal with this evil trade?
European Council — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Immigration
Theresa Mary May (Conservative, Centre-right): The European High Representative has been making a number of visits to countries in north Africa that are either source countries or transit countries for the migration crisis that we have seen in Europe. The right hon. Gentleman is right to say that many people are coming across from Libya into Italy. I am pleased that it was the United Kingdom that was instrumental in getting the United Nations Security Council resolution that has enabled action off the Libyan coast to be taken, as well as rescuing thousands of people. Sadly, people are still dying in the Mediterranean, but the Royal Navy has been involved in the breaking up of boats that have been used by the criminal gangs. This is an ongoing activity, however, and we need to take every step we can to stop this terrible trade in human beings that brings so much misery.
European Council — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Mixed Topics
Theresa Mary May (Conservative, Centre-right): We want to ensure that Britain is open for business and that our universities sector is open for those sorts of exchanges. This is precisely what we have done in relation to people coming to the United Kingdom from outside the European Union. I hope that we have given some reassurance to the universities in relation to the arrangements that they put in place with other EU member states prior to our leaving. We have made it clear that when funding arrangements are put in place that meet our priorities and provide value for money, they will continue beyond the point at which we leave.
European Council — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Immigration
Theresa Mary May (Conservative, Centre-right): It is important that as we look to get the right deal for the UK, we recognise that what we are doing is negotiating a new relationship with the EU, and that is ensuring our businesses are able to operate and trade within the European market, but that we also put in place the other things I believe were a requirement of the British people in their vote, such as control of immigration.
European Council — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Immigration
Theresa Mary May (Conservative, Centre-right): This is an issue the hon. Gentleman has campaigned long and hard on. He has asked this question of David Cameron in the past when he was Prime Minister and he has asked it of me as Home Secretary, and I am sure he has asked it of previous Foreign Secretaries. We have our own rules and regulations in terms of how we determine who is able to enter the UK. The hon. Gentleman talks about the old position; it was the position of the UK Government and it remains the position of the UK Government.
European Council — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Civil Rights
Robert Edward Jenrick (Conservative, Centre-right): Does my right hon. Friend agree that in a free society there is never an obligation on anyone, certainly not Members of Parliament, to change their views just because a majority has voted a different way? However, there is an obligation on all of us, including those of us who voted to remain, to work in the national interest and not to undermine it by tying the hands of the Prime Minister and the Government in a way that would never happen in commerce or in private negotiations.
European Council — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Immigration
Theresa Mary May (Conservative, Centre-right): The Government, and all Ministers in the Government, exercise every care in the language they use in these matters. I have to say to the hon. Gentleman that the image he portrays of the impression we have given for EU citizens is quite the wrong one; I have been very clear about our expectations and intentions in relation to EU citizens living here in the United Kingdom. But he must accept, as must other Members of this House, that we also have a duty to British citizens who are living in EU member states, and that is why I want to ensure that the status of both is guaranteed.
European Council — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Mixed Topics
Theresa Mary May (Conservative, Centre-right): There is an assumption behind the hon. Gentleman’s question that the only way to access such research networks is through being a member of the European Union. Of course, there are those here in the United Kingdom who are members of a number of research networks that operate as effectively but are nothing to do with the European Union. I can assure him that that is another aspect of the future implications that we are aware of and will be taking into consideration.
European Council — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Immigration
Theresa Mary May (Conservative, Centre-right): I have said on a number of occasions, including last week, that I hope to be able to address that issue at an early stage. I repeat my earlier comments in relation to our expectation for EU citizens, and I repeat once again that it is for this House not simply to ignore the interests of British citizens who are living in European Union member states. We must ensure that their rights are guaranteed, as the rights of EU citizens living here will be guaranteed.
European Council — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Immigration
Matthew Robert Warman (Conservative, Centre-right): The people of Boston and Skegness voted more than any others to leave the European Union, and no constituency, I am sure, approves more of the Prime Minister’s approach, but does she agree that what they deserve is the speedy triggering of article 50, the speedy commencement of trade negotiations, a speedy approach to taking back control over immigration and, while we are at it, a speedy roll-out of the controlling migration fund?
European Council — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Immigration
Theresa Mary May (Conservative, Centre-right): I will repeat this yet again, as the hon. Gentleman does not appear to have heard the answer when it was given previously: I expect, intend and want to be able to guarantee the status of EU citizens living in the United Kingdom, but the only circumstance in which that would not be possible is if the status of British citizens, including people from Scotland, who live in the European Union is not guaranteed in return. It is a very simple position. We cannot abandon British citizens.
Calais — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Immigration
Amber Rudd (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Lady has raised some important points. I draw her attention to some of the comments that my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister made about the important work that the European Union is doing, some of which we are leading on, on upstream funding to ensure that the terrible tragedy of refugees moving, quite often from east and west African countries, is stopped. We do that by being one of the largest donors and by working in partnership arrangements, and I share her view that if we can stop the scale of movement, that deals with the most important element of why people come over to Europe and then make their way across France I do not need reminding by the hon. Lady about the scale of misery in the camp in Calais. That is why I have made it such a priority to work with my French counterpart to see the end of that camp and, I believe, the end of the misery that has taken place there. Protecting children has always been at the forefront of what we are doing The hon. Lady referred to the Dubs amendment and what else we are doing to take children according to Dubs, and I can tell her that we are continuing to interview to ensure that over the next three weeks—she asked particularly about the time frame—we continue to take several hundred more children in addition to the 200 we have already taken. Yes, we are continuing to work on the Dubs children who will be eligible in Greece and Italy, and we will bring some of them over soon. There is a funding arrangement with local authorities for each child who is given a place as they arrive The hon. Lady specifically mentioned Sangatte in 2002. She is right that the camp was closed. There were approximately 2,000 people there. At that time, the UK agreed to take half of the adults. We have not put in place such an agreement this time. Instead, we are taking some of the most vulnerable people, who will mainly be children. However, lessons have been learned from the closure of the Sangatte camp, because camps grew up swiftly afterwards, particularly the Calais camp. As she points out, this camp is several—four and possibly even five—times larger than Sangatte ever was. I refer her to my earlier comment that part of our funding commitment to the French is based on securing the camp as it is—in other words, once it has been closed. We want to make sure that we work closely with them so that no future camp is erected there I believe that if there is no camp for people to come to, that will stop the dreadful passage of people across France and the dreadful endeavours that people put themselves through, such as throwing themselves on to lorries and trucks, in trying to get to the UK. I believe that that will go some way to stopping them being easy prey to the traffickers, whom the hon. Lady and I both abhor.
Calais — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Immigration
Amber Rudd (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank the hon. and learned Lady for her questions. I agree that we should thank the NGOs and the volunteers, who have done great work in the camp to protect vulnerable children. They will be integral to protecting the children during the closure of the camp over the next few days and weeks, because there is sometimes a great lack of trust between Government agencies and the refugees or asylum seekers there. Their role will therefore be critical in trying to reach a resolution The hon. and learned Lady mentioned reports from Calais. I had not heard the particular report she raised. In this sort of environment, a lot of reports and counter-news go around. We are very clear that we try to keep everyone informed about what is going on when we are there. I respectfully point out that it is a pretty tricky situation. We are dealing with volatile people in some cases, and there is a lot of misinformation. Our staff are doing their best to make sure that everyone is kept informed. On protecting children, I have repeatedly stated to the French that our priority is to ensure that those children are kept safe. They have agreed to transfer all the children into a secure area as the camp is cleared. Once the children are in that secure area we should be able to expedite our interviewing process and make sure that we can keep track of the children whom we would like to transfer to the UK; frankly, over the past few days, having agreed to transfer children, it has then sometimes been difficult to find them on the day to make sure that they get on the buses. I hope that, with the children held securely in that area of the camp, that situation will improve On other Dubs transfers, we have learned a lot and I hope we can speed up in other areas of the world, such as Italy and Greece.
Calais — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Immigration
Roger James Gale (Conservative, Centre-right): Those relatively few Members of the House who have in the past accommodated young asylum seekers in their own homes are in a position to confirm to my right hon. Friend that that cannot be undertaken lightly and proper preparation needs to be made. If this humanitarian exercise is not to end in tears it is vital that the Home Secretary sticks to her guns. Will she reassure the House that before any child is admitted, every receiving family will be properly screened, and that, in the interests of national security, every young adult admitted to the United Kingdom will be screened before they are allowed to come into the country?
Calais — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Immigration
Amber Rudd (Conservative, Centre-right): I know that my hon. Friend has housed asylum seekers in the past, and I value his experience in this area. I reassure him that we will always make the correct safeguarding checks and will always make sure that the families are prepared. We will not take any risks, either in terms of national security or on behalf of the children who are moving here.
Calais — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Immigration
Amber Rudd (Conservative, Centre-right): The right hon. Lady has done much to raise this issue so often in the House, and is right to do so. I can tell her that the plan is—this is what the French have said they will do—to maintain the 1,000-plus children and minors in the secure area of the camp. As I said earlier, we think this will help us in expediting the process of bringing some of them over here in the next few weeks. We expect there to be a three-week period, but we will be moving straightaway, although no children are moving today. I have not followed up with the French on the support offered to the children there, but I will make sure that I do.
Calais — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Immigration
Peter William Bone (Conservative, Centre-right): One of the classic routes of trafficking is to bring teenage children—young girls, in particular—into the country and put them into local government care; then, within weeks, they are disappeared back into trafficking. Will the Home Secretary assure us that on this occasion every single child admitted to this country will be monitored? May we have a written statement each month to confirm that those children are still being looked after and have not been retrafficked?
Calais — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Immigration
Amber Rudd (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend raises such an important point. I know he has done a lot of work in this area. He is absolutely right that there is always a risk to accepting these young women, but it is because they are at risk that we have been so keen to prioritise them. That is why, to protect them from the sort of dangers he sets out, of the nearly 200 people we have taken over the past weekend, nearly a third have been young women. I can reassure him that we will be making constant safeguarding checks. I will write to him more fully to set out exactly what we are doing.
Calais — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Immigration
Amber Rudd (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Gentleman is right that traffickers are a part of the problem, not the whole problem. He and I know, as the whole House does, that there are many reasons why this takes place. It starts with the upstream problem that we are trying to address, supporting African countries where a lot of these refugees are coming from, with other countries internationally. On our immigration policy on asylum, there are no plans to change it.
Calais — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Immigration
Wendy Morton (Conservative, Centre-right): I would like to add my thanks to the Home Secretary for her statement. In working to transfer eligible children from Calais to the UK, will she confirm that this is being done through a proper process with the agreement of the French, and that all the children coming over will undergo appropriate security checks?
Calais — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Immigration
Amber Rudd (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend is absolutely right. We are initially making proper checks on every individual—every child or minor—who is brought across. We have to ensure that there is safeguarding and the interest of the child is served first before bringing them over to the UK. Those checks are always being done.
Calais — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Mixed Topics
Amber Rudd (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend is right that we are committed to prioritising the most vulnerable, which means the youngest and minors at risk of sexual exploitation. We will always make sure that we do that. We are putting them at the front of the queue in terms of interviewing. Frankly, these are the ones who are most likely to qualify under the Dubs amendment, where it becomes clear that they are better served by being in the UK.
Calais — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Immigration
Amber Rudd (Conservative, Centre-right): I am surprised to hear the hon. Lady talk about a detention centre. We are making sure that all the children who come over here are looked after in a way that we, as a proud and compassionate nation, can rightly call the best way. If she has any additional information, she is welcome to send it to me or to hand it to the Minister for Immigration at the end of this statement. We have 36 staff on the ground who have gone over during the past few weeks specifically to do this. They are engaged with the NGOs as well. There is no "them and us" feeling in the camp. We all have the same aims, and I would ask her to bear that in mind. We want to get the youngest children and the most vulnerable out. There is nothing but good will and good intent on this side to make sure that we can achieve that.
Calais — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Immigration
Byron Davies (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank the Home Secretary for her comprehensive statement. It will not have gone unnoticed from media reports that a number of the children coming into the UK appear to be mature young men. Can she confirm how many people the Home Office has rejected on the grounds of age?
Calais — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Immigration
Amber Rudd (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend is right that there have been reports about some of the children turning out to be older than 17. We do checks as thoroughly as we can—highly professional checks—on the ground in an environment that is incredibly challenging. I ask my hon. Friend and other hon. Members to bear with us while we try to deliver the best for the young people who need, sometimes in the interest of safety, to come to the UK. But no one should be in any doubt: we take all assessments very seriously, and we will continue to make sure that we prioritise the most vulnerable, which will always be the youngest.
Calais — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Immigration
Amber Rudd (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right. More work needs to be done upstream to stop people coming here in the first place, to stop these dreadful scenes where we see people arriving and not being able to get over to the UK, and to stop the dreadful scenes of people drowning in the Mediterranean as well. My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister referred earlier to our work with the UN under UN Security Council mandate. We are working under Operation Sophia, with HMS Enterprise in place at the moment. That makes sure that we do our bit—play our leading role—in trying to stop the dreadful smuggling of people across from Libya.
Calais — House of Commons, 2016-10-24
Topic: Immigration
Stewart Jackson (Conservative, Centre-right): I commend the Home Secretary for her statement. Notwithstanding the obduracy of the French, the situation is not being improved by the catastrophic decision of the German Government last year to disregard the Dublin protocol in respect of processing refugees. That said, I believe that the decision to close the camp is absolutely right, because it will save lives by stymying the evil work of people traffickers. Specifically, children aside, what efforts is the Home Office making to assist the 10% of the camp who are vulnerable women?