argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Free Childcare Entitlement — House of Commons, 2017-09-06
Topic: Mixed Topics
Robert Goodwill (Conservative, Centre-right): The raw stats indicate that about a quarter of women and 10% of men took additional hours, but I have also heard from people who could not get into employment at all because of the cost of childcare. A lady I spoke to in York said that the fact that she could now work and take up the 30 hours of childcare greatly transformed her family’s finances and life. The system is very flexible. Families can spread the childcare over more weeks or use different providers, including those in the voluntary sector, maintained nurseries or childminders.
Free Childcare Entitlement — House of Commons, 2017-09-06
Topic: Other
Peter William Bone (Conservative, Centre-right): Having listened to the urgent question—I congratulate the hon. Member for Batley and Spen (Tracy Brabin) on getting it granted, and the Minister on doing a written statement—I think there is agreement on both sides of the House that this is an excellent policy, and the issue is just the implementation. If there is one Minister in the whole House who will make sure something is done properly, it is the Minister at the Dispatch Box today. Will he give the House an undertaking that he will come back later in the year to update the House on this policy?
Free Childcare Entitlement — House of Commons, 2017-09-06
Topic: Other
Robert Goodwill (Conservative, Centre-right): There are colleagues in the House from places such as York, Northumberland, Newham, Wigan, Staffordshire, Swindon, Portsmouth, Hertfordshire, Dorset, Leicestershire, North Yorkshire and Tower Hamlets, which have been in the pilot for a year. I have not heard a peep from anyone saying that the scheme is not working, so obviously the pilot has been successful.
National Shipbuilding Strategy — House of Commons, 2017-09-06
Topic: Mixed Topics
Michael Fallon (Conservative, Centre-right): I certainly hope that Harland and Wolff will participate in this competition and rise to the challenge. We retain an open mind as to what the final winning solution is likely to be. We have learned a lot from the block build construction of the aircraft carriers, but equally it might well be the case that one particular yard comes up with the best proposal, or that that comes from a consortium of one or two yards, working with international yards as well on some elements of the ships. So we have a completely open mind as to how this is going to be done. This is a challenge for all the shipyards in Britain and Northern Ireland.
National Shipbuilding Strategy — House of Commons, 2017-09-06
Topic: Mixed Topics
Thomas Christopher John Pursglove (Conservative, Centre-right): When I recently wrote to my right hon. Friend, I included a prospectus of Corby steel products, which I obviously commend to him. Will he give an undertaking today that, whenever possible, we will use British steel in the building of these ships?
National Shipbuilding Strategy — House of Commons, 2017-09-06
Topic: Domestic Commerce
Michael Fallon (Conservative, Centre-right): Yes, and we want to make it easier for more SMEs to participate in the supply chains of the major yards. Portsmouth and the surrounding area are now enjoying the challenge of completing the final fitting out of the two carriers and making sure that they are properly maintained and serviced, but there may well be further opportunities in the Havant area. I remember that the sector report that was produced for that area as part of the Solent local enterprise partnership specifically drew attention to the maritime strengths of the region, and I hope that it, too, can get involved.
National Shipbuilding Strategy — House of Commons, 2017-09-06
Topic: Mixed Topics
Michael Fallon (Conservative, Centre-right): It might be far from the sea, but it is a very important firm and a key maker of the propulsion systems we will need. Of course, by definition, the higher the British content of these frigates, the less the price will be affected by the depreciation of sterling, but I will not speculate as to where the level will eventually settle.
National Shipbuilding Strategy — House of Commons, 2017-09-06
Topic: Mixed Topics
Simon Richard Clarke (Conservative, Centre-right): I warmly welcome today’s statement, as will my constituents who work at British Steel in Skinningrove. I am the deputy chairman of the all-party group on steel and metal related industries. With that in mind, I was hoping that officials from the Department might come to meet the APPG to discuss how we can deliver what has been rightly referred to as the pressing need to maximise the British steel content in the new vessel.
Ways and Means — House of Commons, 2017-09-06
Topic: Other
Melvyn John Stride (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Gentleman is right about the importance of those measures, and they will go forward. The policy has not changed; it will just come forward at a different time with other measures in this area.
Ways and Means — House of Commons, 2017-09-06
Topic: Other
Eleanor Fulton Laing (Conservative, Centre-right): Order. I thank the hon. Gentleman for his point of order. It is right that we must keep a careful eye on these matters, which of course I am doing. I am sure the Minister is, in the remarks he is making, using as an illustration other policies that may not be his policies. Of course, if he is replying to points raised in the debate, I will always encourage that, because it is important that every Member in this House has a say in the debate. [Interruption.]
Ways and Means — House of Commons, 2017-09-06
Topic: Other
Eleanor Fulton Laing (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Gentleman must not add more from a sedentary position to his point of order, so I will not take up that point, which in any case I cannot answer. The Minister has barely begun, and I am sure that in his wide-ranging speech he will cover everything he ought to cover and everything the House requires him to cover.
Ways and Means — House of Commons, 2017-09-06
Topic: Mixed Topics
Melvyn John Stride (Conservative, Centre-right): The answer to the hon. Gentleman’s question is that that is precisely what this Bill will be achieving. We will be putting an end to permanent non-dom status, so that those who are "deemed domicile" are treated on the same basis for taxation purposes as other residents in our country. Let me gently remind him that his party was in government for 13 years and very little happened then on the issues to which he now professes objection. So we should not be taking too many lessons from Labour on the issue of non-doms.
Ways and Means — House of Commons, 2017-09-06
Topic: Domestic Commerce
Simon James Hoare (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Gentleman’s former noble friend Lord Sugar, who knows a little about productivity and running a business, poured a huge amount of cold water on the prospectus that the Labour party put before the electorate a few months ago, which was clearly rejected by the largest number of businesses and business owners. Rather than the vaudeville that the hon. Gentleman seems to be going on about—it is like the Labour party conference speech that he might give, if he is given a platform—why does he not address the issues before the House?
Ways and Means — House of Commons, 2017-09-06
Topic: Domestic Commerce
Nicky Morgan (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right. We have agreed that people want more digital interactions. They are now much more used to them, and that is how people do their banking and lots of ordering. However, when there is a problem—we have seen this with the introduction of free childcare, which was the subject of the urgent question earlier today—people do need to speak to someone. That is particularly true for the smallest businesses, for which dealing with HMRC can be stressful and something they want resolved as quickly as possible. HMRC will want to consider whether that is done through face-to-face contact at offices, or by ensuring that there is a really good phone helpline system or another way of speaking online to people who are able to respond rapidly. I do not want to pre-empt what the Committee will look at, but as constituency Members of Parliament, we have all heard about cases when people have found getting hold of HMRC frustrating. HMRC is aware of that, and it has done a lot of work to improve customer service, but that is something that Members of Parliament could certainly look at further I welcome the deferral that the Financial Secretary announced on 13 July. It means that digital record-keeping and reporting for income tax and national insurance will not become mandatory until at least 2020. Although his statement kept open the possibility that Making Tax Digital would never be made mandatory for income tax and national insurance, resolution 38 suggests that that remains the Government’s medium to long-term ambition. His statement confirmed that the process will start with VAT in 2019. Most businesses already file their VAT returns quarterly and online, so it is sensible to start with a tax for which Making Tax Digital will not require such a significant change in businesses’ practice. Smaller businesses in particular will have breathed a huge sigh of relief when the concession was announced in July, so I thank the Minister for that.
Ways and Means — House of Commons, 2017-09-06
Topic: Other
Eleanor Fulton Laing (Conservative, Centre-right): Order. Before the hon. Gentleman gives way again, I must tell him that I have been paying careful attention to what he is saying, and while I accept his explanation that he is about to discuss the motions, there are 48 of them on the Order Paper, so a fairly wide field of matters is under discussion. The hon. Gentleman has been dealing with subjects that are not relevant to the motions. He has been on his feet for 31 minutes, and I have given him quite a lot of leeway, but I am sure he will appreciate that, while it is interesting to consider the economic history of the last decade or so—and we are all fascinated —he really ought to speak to some of the motions, of which there are many before us this afternoon.
Ways and Means — House of Commons, 2017-09-06
Topic: Other
Eleanor Fulton Laing (Conservative, Centre-right): Order. We cannot have such expressions from around the Chamber. The hon. Gentleman has only spoken for one hour and five minutes. There are 48 motions, and I dare say that he still has more to say. As long as he sticks rigorously to speaking about the 48 motions, it is perfectly in order for him to go on speaking. However, now that he has surpassed the time taken by the previous speaker, I am sure that the incentive for him to speak for much longer is not great.
Ways and Means — House of Commons, 2017-09-06
Topic: Mixed Topics
Eleanor Fulton Laing (Conservative, Centre-right): I appreciate the point that the hon. Lady is making. In her position as the Chair of one of the senior Committees of the House, she is right to draw the matter to the House’s attention. She refers to the point of order made earlier this afternoon by the right hon. Member for New Forest East (Dr Lewis), to which Mr Speaker gave a very thorough answer, making it very clear that he is of the opinion that it is in the best interests of the House that the Committees are established as soon as possible. My understanding from what he said is that the Leader of the House is in agreement with him. I take it from the general demeanour of the Chamber now, and earlier this afternoon during the point of order from the right hon. Member for New Forest, that the House agrees that it would be in the best interests of our democratic system that the Select Committees are established as soon as possible I have every confidence in the Leader of the House. Obviously she is not present in the Chamber at the moment, because nobody knew until a moment ago that the hon. Lady was going to raise this point of order. I am giving a rather lengthy reply in the hope that the Leader of the House will arrive in the Chamber, but I cannot enter into the long speech tradition that has been established this afternoon, as it is not my duty to speak for more than a few seconds on such a matter, and I think that this is all I can do. The point has been noted by those on the Treasury Bench, and I would expect the Leader of the House, who would have the best interests of the House at the front of her mind in all she does, to take note of what the hon. Lady said and the Chamber’s reaction to it.
Benefits Cap — House of Commons, 2017-02-20
Topic: Housing
Damian Howard Green (Conservative, Centre-right): The right hon. Gentleman makes a characteristically reasonable point, to which I make two responses. The first is that those who are put into hardship have available to them discretionary housing payments, which have been extensively used by local authorities throughout the country precisely to avoid the problem that he suggests. Secondly, on the other point he makes, some of the research we have done shows that households that have been capped are 41% more likely to go into work than similar, uncapped households. So the policy is very successful in encouraging people to get back to work, which of course is the best thing for them in the long run.
Benefits Cap — House of Commons, 2017-02-20
Topic: Other
Damian Howard Green (Conservative, Centre-right): I, along with both my Ministers and my officials, engage positively with the Scottish Government all the time. I know that because I go to the meetings, and I have engaged positively with them on this and all the other important issues that we have to discuss in this field.
Mental Health: Support — House of Commons, 2017-02-20
Topic: Mixed Topics
Brett Charles Anthony Elphicke (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank my hon. Friend for that reply. Does she agree that local voluntary groups, such as the Talk It Out mental health group in my constituency, do invaluable work to help people to be work-ready, and that we must do more to support them?
Mental Health: Support — House of Commons, 2017-02-20
Topic: Mixed Topics
Questions: What are the Government doing to raise awareness of the Access to Work programme and the support it can offer to employers who want to make reasonable adjustments for employees with disabilities?; What are the Government doing to draw on the expertise of charities and other third sector organisations to help find the best way to support those most in need into the workplace, as many charities have much experience in supporting those with mental health conditions?
Penelope Mary Mordaunt (Conservative, Centre-right): Let me point out that only 3% of those decisions are overturned. The vast majority of the assessments are good. The hon. Lady should let me know if she has examples of where that is not the case. One thing I have done to ensure that we get more timely information about where things are going wrong and where standards are not being maintained is to establish a claimant user rep panel, which will go live in the next few weeks. It will be rolled out on a very large scale across the country. In the meantime, she should keep on flagging up the issues that she finds.
Auto-enrolment — House of Commons, 2017-02-20
Topic: Domestic Commerce
Questions: What assessment his Department has made of recent trends in the number of people saving into a pension scheme as a result of auto-enrolment.; What assessment his Department has made of recent trends in the number of people saving into a pension scheme as a result of auto-enrolment.
Damian Howard Green (Conservative, Centre-right): I am happy to tell my hon. Friend that his example is an exception. When the Turner commission reported and suggested this kind of scheme in 2005, it estimated that about 25% of people would opt out, but the opt-out rate is about 10% at the moment. There is always more to do, as my hon. Friend’s example suggests, which is why we are currently conducting a review to ensure that such schemes are even better in the future in order to work for all kinds of individuals, particularly those in small businesses.
Auto-enrolment — House of Commons, 2017-02-20
Topic: Domestic Commerce
Questions: What assessment his Department has made of recent trends in the number of people saving into a pension scheme as a result of auto-enrolment.; What assessment his Department has made of recent trends in the number of people saving into a pension scheme as a result of auto-enrolment.
Damian Howard Green (Conservative, Centre-right): The Bill—I note the Labour party did not vote against it on Second or Third Reading, so the hon. Gentleman cannot have objected to it that strongly—actually set up a new system of regulation, particularly of master trusts, that deals with not just transparency but a whole range of aspects, so this relatively new form of financial body is now much better regulated than it was before. I would have thought that the hon. Gentleman welcomed it—actually, he did welcome it.
Learning Difficulties: Support — House of Commons, 2017-02-20
Topic: Mixed Topics
Penelope Mary Mordaunt (Conservative, Centre-right): I am happy to join my hon. Friend in praising the work of Balance CIC. This is a group of individuals we want to do much more for. We will be bringing forward a young person’s work experience scheme shortly, and we wish to open up apprenticeships, but more is needed in this area, and organisations such as Balance can help us do that work.
Personal Independence Payments — House of Commons, 2017-02-20
Topic: Other
Penelope Mary Mordaunt (Conservative, Centre-right): If the hon. Lady has cases she wishes me to look at, she must write to me about them. We are currently still outlining the criteria for the scheme to be introduced, but in the meantime, as she will know, we do not wish to call people for reassessment who would be in that category, so if she has cases where that is happening, she must let me know.
Universal Credit — House of Commons, 2017-02-20
Topic: Immigration
Questions: What estimate his Department has made of the number of households in which a person in work will receive less income in universal credit than they would have received in tax credits.
Damian Patrick George Hinds (Conservative, Centre-right): Anybody who changes from tax credits to universal credit as a result of managed migration can get transitional protection. For those who are coming into it with a new claim, it is a wholly different system with a completely different support set, including much more child care support. There are various other reforms from which the individual to whom the hon. Gentleman refers would also benefit.
Universal Credit — House of Commons, 2017-02-20
Topic: Mixed Topics
Questions: What estimate his Department has made of the number of households in which a person in work will receive less income in universal credit than they would have received in tax credits.
Julian William Hendy Brazier (Conservative, Centre-right): Does my hon. Friend accept that universal credit, which now reaches almost a third of the unemployed people in my constituency, is a much simpler system and the first major new benefit introduced in my political lifetime that has not resulted in a whole string of correspondence from people with difficulties?
Pension Investments — House of Commons, 2017-02-20
Topic: Mixed Topics
Questions: What steps the Government are taking to ensure that people have accurate and clear information to inform decisions on the use of their pension investments.
Mary Josephine Robinson (Conservative, Centre-right): What further steps is the Department taking, working with other Departments, to ensure that protections are in place for those in receipt of their pensions who may be at risk of falling foul of financial scams in their retirement?
Jobcentre Plus (Closures) — House of Commons, 2017-02-20
Topic: Civil Rights
Questions: For what reason his Department did not carry out an impact assessment prior to the announcement of the proposed closure of Jobcentre Plus estates on 26 January 2017.
Damian Patrick George Hinds (Conservative, Centre-right): We have been mindful throughout of the impact on staff and customers. Analysis and local knowledge have informed the proposals, which are all subject to consultation with staff and, where appropriate, the public. A full equality impact assessment will be carried out.
Disabled People — House of Commons, 2017-02-20
Topic: Mixed Topics
Penelope Mary Mordaunt (Conservative, Centre-right): In "Improving Lives: The Work, Health and Disability Green Paper", we asked about the barriers preventing employers from recruiting and retaining disabled people and people with health conditions. We will shortly bring forward measures to address those barriers.
Disabled People — House of Commons, 2017-02-20
Topic: Immigration
Penelope Mary Mordaunt (Conservative, Centre-right): The right hon. Lady raises an important point. I can give her assurances that both my office and that of the Minister for Employment are working very closely with the Home Office on precisely the group of individuals she mentions and other vulnerable people such as refugees. I am very happy to raise any points that she wants me to make.
Disabled People — House of Commons, 2017-02-20
Topic: Mixed Topics
Philip Andrew Davies (Conservative, Centre-right): I am holding a Disability Confident event in my constituency on 28 April. The Minister will be very welcome if she is able to find time in her busy schedule to join us. In the meantime, will she look at what incentives can be given to employers to give disabled people a chance to prove themselves and to show what they are capable of if they are just given that chance in the first place?
Disabled People — House of Commons, 2017-02-20
Topic: Mixed Topics
Penelope Mary Mordaunt (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank my hon. Friend for holding a Disability Confident event. We are looking at what further support and, in some cases, incentives we can provide for employers. We need to raise the profile of the fact that these individuals have much to offer any business. We will be holding events in March in this place to enable all Members of all parties to become Disability Confident employers and to ask for their assistance in signing up 30 targeted organisations in their constituencies. I hope all Members will take that opportunity.
Disabled People — House of Commons, 2017-02-20
Topic: Civil Rights
Rebecca Faye Clark (Pow) (Conservative, Centre-right): This question is highly relevant to what Members have been saying. I am sure that the Minister will agree that to change attitudes towards disability in the workforce, we need more businesses to become role models in this area. In Taunton, sadly, very few businesses have signed up to the disability awareness register. Will the Minister join me in encouraging local businesses to attend a special event to be staged by Taunton jobcentre on 13 March to promote the Disability Confident initiative?
Jobcentre Plus (Closures) — House of Commons, 2017-02-20
Topic: Mixed Topics
Damian Patrick George Hinds (Conservative, Centre-right): The proposals are subject to consultation with staff and, where appropriate, the public. Should they proceed, the Department will support customers through any change of jobcentre. Staff will continue to offer the same support and services to customers and to maintain the relationships they have built up over time.
Self-employed People: Support — House of Commons, 2017-02-20
Topic: Domestic Commerce
Victoria Mary Boswell Prentis (Conservative, Centre-right): There are 40 new businesses in Banbury currently supported by the new enterprise allowance, with about 100 more going through the developmental stage. Can the Minister reassure us that the programme is not just there to set up new businesses, but to enable them to grow?