argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Immigration Detention: Victims of Modern Slavery — House of Commons, 2019-07-17
Topic: Law and Crime
Caroline Fiona Ellen Nokes (Conservative, Centre-right): It is still very much the case that it is the Home Office and Home Office staff in the widest sense who identify the greatest number of victims of modern slavery. Training is provided, and it is important that training is not only provided, but refreshed and is an ongoing process. My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister has made her commitment clear on this issue, and it has been a driving force in the Home Office to support her in the mission to stamp out this terrible crime, to identify the victims and to ensure that they are given the help that they need as victims.
Immigration Detention: Victims of Modern Slavery — House of Commons, 2019-07-17
Topic: Law and Crime
Caroline Fiona Ellen Nokes (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Lady is simply wrong to suggest that data sharing is always bad. In fact, in many instances, data sharing between the Home Office and the police can identify people who need to be safeguarded, and it is crucial that we have systems that will enable people to be correctly identified and then referred through the appropriate mechanisms. As I said in response to an earlier question, it is still the Home Office that identifies the highest number of victims of modern slavery.
Immigration Detention: Victims of Modern Slavery — House of Commons, 2019-07-17
Topic: Law and Crime
Caroline Fiona Ellen Nokes (Conservative, Centre-right): The Home Office is making good progress in replacing antiquated case-working systems and data platforms, much of which will be complete by March next year, but it is a complex change process and although it will provide us with modern tools to protect and utilise data effectively, it is not an instant fix and will require further investment in the coming years. The changes will also mean that we will be able to act more swiftly to update systems to provide better organisation and granularity of data once they are deployed, but it does not negate the risk that data can be easily misinterpreted and each individual’s journey through the system is different, and aggregated information does not always represent the work undertaken. None the less, we will continue to focus on individual needs.
Immigration Detention: Victims of Modern Slavery — House of Commons, 2019-07-17
Topic: Law and Crime
Caroline Fiona Ellen Nokes (Conservative, Centre-right): I reiterate the point that detention can only be maintained where there is a realistic chance of removal within a reasonable timescale. The hon. Lady will have heard me comment earlier about auto-bail applications at two months. An individual in detention can apply for bail at any time. I urge her constituent to provide that advice to the individual concerned.
Immigration Detention: Victims of Modern Slavery — House of Commons, 2019-07-17
Topic: Government Operations
Caroline Fiona Ellen Nokes (Conservative, Centre-right): The right hon. Lady will have heard my previous answers about the importance of relying on published statistics that can be properly verified. Relying on information that turns out to have come from aggregated sources, which then transpire to be inaccurate, is a very dangerous route to go down.
Census (Return Particulars and Removal of Penalties) Bill [Lords] — House of Commons, 2019-07-17
Topic: Government Operations
Kevin John Foster (Conservative, Centre-right): In deciding the questions for the census, the Government will be guided by the technical recommendations of the ONS. Of course, the House and Parliament will need to decide on the questions in the census via the orders that will be introduced later this year, but the Government will continue to be guided by the ONS.
Bullying and Harassment of MPs’ Parliamentary Staff — House of Commons, 2019-07-17
Topic: Government Operations
Andrea Jacqueline Leadsom (Conservative, Centre-right): I am glad my hon. Friend raises that point because, of course, the truth is that the training has been properly up and running for only the past couple of months. An awful lot of work went into procuring the training provider, as we needed to find a provider that could deal with the sheer volume of people who need to undertake the training. The training course itself was written specifically to be relevant to our working practices in Parliament I and a number of other people who are closely involved with the independent complaints procedure establishment went on the training only six or seven weeks ago to test it and to make sure it is entirely relevant and will be useful and welcomed. That has been done, so it is a bit unfair to say, "Well, why hasn’t everybody done it?" There genuinely is a capacity issue, but if all Whips were now to encourage Members to go on the Valuing Everyone training within the next six months, and all staff to undertake it within a year, it should be doable and would certainly be valuable I also believe that, with so many people working on the parliamentary estate, the centrally organised induction course that already exists should be made mandatory for all new starters and should be completed within three months of joining. No other major organisation would allow a new member of staff to come into such a huge and complex institution, let alone a building that is semi-falling down, without being compulsorily trained on things like health and safety, cyber-security and fire safety, let alone the behaviour code and how to raise a complaint or a grievance It would be easy to implement compulsory induction training, and the Director General and the Clerk of the House of Commons are keen to oversee that. It could be easily done by simply giving any new joiner a parliamentary pass that lasts for three months and is then renewed subject to their having completed the induction course As Leader of the House, I was proud to host visits from the Canadian and Australian Parliaments and to meet the Scottish Presiding Officer and the Llywydd of the Welsh Assembly to answer their questions on how we are determined to achieve culture change here in Westminster We should be ambitious to be a role model for all Parliaments around the world, confident in our determination always to treat everyone who works here or visits here with the dignity and respect they deserve.
Bullying and Harassment of MPs’ Parliamentary Staff — House of Commons, 2019-07-17
Topic: Government Operations
Maria Frances Lewis Miller (Conservative, Centre-right): I apologise for not hearing the start of my hon. Friend’s speech. Does she not agree that there needs to be accountability for who is looking at that? This process needs to be led by Members, and therefore there is a role for the House of Commons Commission to be doing such things, although we do not really know whether it is doing that.
Bullying and Harassment of MPs’ Parliamentary Staff — House of Commons, 2019-07-17
Topic: Government Operations
Melvyn John Stride (Conservative, Centre-right): I do not know; the House of Commons Commission will consider that. I interpret the hon. Gentleman’s question as showing concern that we should always be aware of the costs of putting recommendations into place, and he is entirely correct. Often, reports come forward with recommendations, and off we go saying that we should accept everything exactly as it is presented; further down the line, we decide that it was rather bureaucratic and expensive. In making sure that the recommendations of the report are bedded in correctly, we should have such issues at the forefront of our minds.
Bullying and Harassment of MPs’ Parliamentary Staff — House of Commons, 2019-07-17
Topic: Government Operations
Maria Frances Lewis Miller (Conservative, Centre-right): No one would expect non-recent cases to be dealt with immediately; it is obvious that they will take time to look into. Why cannot the Leader of the House enable cases to be brought forward now, while the recruitment process is going on? Clearly, during the summer period people might have more time to gather the necessary information to submit a claim.
Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme — House of Commons, 2019-07-17
Topic: Government Operations
Melvyn John Stride (Conservative, Centre-right): I beg to move, That this House endorses the report of the House of Commons Commission entitled Extending the Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme, laid on Monday 15 July and approves the steps set out in paragraph 8 of the report to make the changes necessary to extend the scheme, endorsed under the resolution of 19 July 2018 We have just debated the findings of the Gemma White report. In the course of her inquiry, MPs’ parliamentary staff came forward to discuss their experiences of working in the House of Commons, just as members of staff employed by the House of Commons came forward to speak to Dame Laura Cox last year. As I think all Members here today have recognised, even one case of bullying, harassment or sexual harassment in this place is one too many. I am grateful to those who have come forward to share their experience with these inquiries. As has been noted today, significant progress has already been made on these issues, and it has been made with cross-party support. In making this progress, it has been critical that the parties were able to work together to establish an independent complaints and grievance scheme for Parliament, which marks its first anniversary this week. I particularly my predecessor and colleagues from across the House for their work in setting up the scheme Now is the right time to make an important change to the function of the ICGS, to enable all those who came forward with past experiences of bullying or harassment to access the scheme and to have full access to an investigation where it is appropriate. I am determined that all those who have worked or are still working in Parliament should have an independent route to turn to if they have been bullied, harassed or sexually harassed. The opportunity for those with historical cases to access the ICGS was one of the three key recommendations made by Dame Laura Cox in her report of October last year. Gemma White has also recommended that the limitation on historical cases be removed, including to allow former members of staff access to the ICGS If we are to create a culture in Westminster in which everyone is confident that they will be treated with dignity and respect, we must continue to reform and also be prepared to confront the problems of the past. Today’s motion is about doing just that—giving complainants whose cases date from before June 2017 full access to the ICGS, along with providing access to this scheme to those who have left their employment here. There is certainly more to be done, but today’s motion is a huge step forward. By acting to address and face up to the past, we work towards creating a Parliament where all can rightly expect to be treated with the dignity and respect they deserve.
A417 Brockworth to Cowley — House of Commons, 2019-07-18
Topic: Transportation
Questions: What recent assessment he has made of progress on improving the A417 missing link between Brockworth and Cowley; and if he will make a statement.
Christopher Stephen Grayling (Conservative, Centre-right): I have taken a personal interest in this project, which I regard as an important part of our infrastructure that needs to be addressed, and my hon. Friend will be pleased to know that it is moving forward. Highways England announced its preferred route for the scheme in March, and it is now preparing for the next stage of the planning process, statutory consultation, followed by a development consent order process.
A417 Brockworth to Cowley — House of Commons, 2019-07-18
Topic: Transportation
Questions: What recent assessment he has made of progress on improving the A417 missing link between Brockworth and Cowley; and if he will make a statement.
Geoffrey Robert Clifton-Brown (Conservative, Centre-right): Sadly, there have been 10 fatalities and 123 casualties on that road in the last four years for which figures are available, so the improvement is desperately needed. Has my right hon. Friend had the chance to evaluate the Labour party’s proposals to scrap the roads programme, which would mean hundreds of road schemes such as this never being built and motorists being hugely inconvenienced?
A417 Brockworth to Cowley — House of Commons, 2019-07-18
Topic: Transportation
Questions: What recent assessment he has made of progress on improving the A417 missing link between Brockworth and Cowley; and if he will make a statement.
Christopher Stephen Grayling (Conservative, Centre-right): Labour Members say "Hear, hear!" because they do not want to hear the truth, which is that we are putting in place schemes that will benefit road safety, that will improve journey times and that will be good for our economy. The A417 improvement is a much needed scheme that does all those things, and it will be an essential part of this Government’s future planning. It is simply a tragedy that Labour wants to scrap it.
Electric Vehicles: Infrastructure — House of Commons, 2019-07-18
Topic: Energy
Peter James Guy Aldous (Conservative, Centre-right): I am grateful to the Minister of State for that reply. At sea, Lowestoft is at the forefront of the transition to a low carbon economy—the world’s largest offshore wind farm is being built just off our coast—but the town also wants to be in the driving seat on land. Will the Minister outline the initiatives that have been put in place to ensure that electric vehicle charging infrastructure can be rolled out quickly and early in Lowestoft, and that the work will not just be focused in large cities?
Electric Vehicles: Infrastructure — House of Commons, 2019-07-18
Topic: Energy
Michael Tyrone Ellis (Conservative, Centre-right): With my hon. Friend as the Member for Lowestoft, I believe that it is doing very well indeed on land, at sea and in the air. We have to remember that the majority of electric vehicle drivers charge their cars at home overnight or at the workplace. We want people across the country, and especially in Lowestoft, to switch to electric vehicles, and we want to leverage private sector investment to provide a self-sustaining public network that is affordable, reliable and accessible. As my hon. Friend knows, the market is best placed to identify the right locations.
Electric Vehicles: Infrastructure — House of Commons, 2019-07-18
Topic: Energy
Andrew Iain Lewer (Conservative, Centre-right): That was slightly more pointed than I expected. At the moment, there is very little provision of electric car charging points in my constituency of Northampton South; I have only been able to find one in the whole constituency. What schemes does the Minister have planned for urban constituencies such as mine, and his?
Electric Vehicles: Infrastructure — House of Commons, 2019-07-18
Topic: Transportation
Questions: E-bikes will offer enormous benefits for transport, health, wellbeing, the environment and green business growth, especially if Government funding is made available to support them. What steps is the Minister taking to incentivise the use of e-bikes?
Michael Tyrone Ellis (Conservative, Centre-right): I have recently been on an e-bike, and it was very good on hills. E-bikes are of great assistance to people with health and mobility issues. We want to encourage their use, and we are doing just that. We are also investing vast sums in cycle lanes and road infrastructure improvements, and we are focusing on safety. There is more to be done, as always, but we have done an awful lot more than Labour did in this area.
Electric Vehicles: Infrastructure — House of Commons, 2019-07-18
Topic: Energy
Questions: E-bikes will offer enormous benefits for transport, health, wellbeing, the environment and green business growth, especially if Government funding is made available to support them. What steps is the Minister taking to incentivise the use of e-bikes?
Michael Tyrone Ellis (Conservative, Centre-right): Of course, the market has been leading in this area, and we now have 20,000 publicly accessible charging points, but I take the hon. Gentleman’s point. We know from the charging of other devices that we use every day that they do not all share the same fixtures, but the fact of the matter is that we have an advanced system in this country. We are growing it, and we will be providing more funding in this area and looking to do more.
Electric Vehicles: Infrastructure — House of Commons, 2019-07-18
Topic: Environment
Questions: E-bikes will offer enormous benefits for transport, health, wellbeing, the environment and green business growth, especially if Government funding is made available to support them. What steps is the Minister taking to incentivise the use of e-bikes?
Andrew James Bridgen (Conservative, Centre-right): Contrary to popular myth, most particulates do not come from modern diesel engines, but from wear between the vehicle’s tyres and the road. Given that electric vehicles tend to be heavier than their conventional counterparts owing to the weight of the batteries, which increases tyre wear and road wear, does the Minister have any concerns that the increased use of electric vehicles may lead to increasing levels of particulates?
Electric Vehicles: Infrastructure — House of Commons, 2019-07-18
Topic: Environment
Questions: E-bikes will offer enormous benefits for transport, health, wellbeing, the environment and green business growth, especially if Government funding is made available to support them. What steps is the Minister taking to incentivise the use of e-bikes?
Michael Tyrone Ellis (Conservative, Centre-right): And what a good impression it is, Mr Speaker. The reality is that we all know that electric vehicles are tremendously advantageous to the economy and, frankly, to the environment, and there is work to be done. My hon. Friend is quite right to mention particulates, and we are looking at that issue, but electric vehicles provide massive benefits to the environment.
Electric Vehicles: Infrastructure — House of Commons, 2019-07-18
Topic: Transportation
Questions: E-bikes will offer enormous benefits for transport, health, wellbeing, the environment and green business growth, especially if Government funding is made available to support them. What steps is the Minister taking to incentivise the use of e-bikes?
Michael Tyrone Ellis (Conservative, Centre-right): As usual, I am afraid that the hon. Gentleman is quite wrong. The fact is that the Secretary of State has been leading the way in this area, and the Department for Transport is also a world leader. Some 200,000 ultra low emission battery, electric, and plug-in hybrid vehicles are registered in the UK, and we are the second-largest market for ultra low emission vehicles in the European Union, so the hon. Gentleman is quite wrong.
Electric Vehicles: Infrastructure — House of Commons, 2019-07-18
Topic: Transportation
Questions: E-bikes will offer enormous benefits for transport, health, wellbeing, the environment and green business growth, especially if Government funding is made available to support them. What steps is the Minister taking to incentivise the use of e-bikes?
Michael Tyrone Ellis (Conservative, Centre-right): Did I say "en suite"? We are investing in technologies and supporting innovations in on-street architecture—[Laughter.] We might invest in "en suite" architecture as well, but that would not be for my Department. Fixtures have been fitted to streetlamps, for example, and there have been innovations in contactless charging. Businesses around the country are working on various mechanisms, and this Department is supporting many of them with funding to help them to invent new technologies.
London Low Emission Zone: HGVs — House of Commons, 2019-07-18
Topic: Transportation
Questions: What recent discussions he has had with Transport for London on the effect of the roll-out of the London low emission zone on showpeople who drive heavy goods vehicles.
Michael Tyrone Ellis (Conservative, Centre-right): Transport in London is devolved to the Mayor of London and is delivered by Transport for London. Ministers and officials meet TfL regularly to discuss a range of topics. I have not discussed the effect of the roll-out of the London low emission zone on showpeople who drive heavy goods vehicles.
London Low Emission Zone: HGVs — House of Commons, 2019-07-18
Topic: Transportation
Questions: What recent discussions he has had with Transport for London on the effect of the roll-out of the London low emission zone on showpeople who drive heavy goods vehicles.
Michael Tyrone Ellis (Conservative, Centre-right): Yes I will. The hon. Gentleman alludes to the fact that Transport for London has agreed a 100% exemption for some showpeople using adapted vehicles from both the ultra low emission and low emission zones. The detail of that is up to the Mayor of London, not the Government, but I understand that the Mayor’s office is agreeing a meeting with the hon. Gentleman to discuss the matter, and I wish him well in that.
Blue Badge Scheme: Hidden Disabilities — House of Commons, 2019-07-18
Topic: Social Welfare
Michael Jon Wood (Conservative, Centre-right): I welcome the £1.7 million that has been allocated to councils to implement the new regulations, but will the Minister encourage local councils to spend that money on autism training for assessors, so that they can have a better understanding of how autism can affect people’s ability to travel?
Blue Badge Scheme: Hidden Disabilities — House of Commons, 2019-07-18
Topic: Social Welfare
Michael Tyrone Ellis (Conservative, Centre-right): Yes I will. My hon. Friend is right: the £1.7 million of funding is to support local authorities in the administration of the scheme. Local authorities can use their share of the funding to train assessors on specific conditions such as autism. We will let local authorities make the actual decisions on how the money can be used most effectively to support the implementation of the new regulations, but I hope that local authorities will look sympathetically at the difficulties faced by people with autism.
Blue Badge Scheme: Hidden Disabilities — House of Commons, 2019-07-18
Topic: Transportation
Michael Tyrone Ellis (Conservative, Centre-right): I am sorry to hear about that. I will raise the matter with the rail Minister—the Under-Secretary of State for Transport, my hon. Friend the Member for Harrogate and Knaresborough (Andrew Jones)—and perhaps he will write to the hon. Lady about it.
Blue Badge Scheme: Hidden Disabilities — House of Commons, 2019-07-18
Topic: Government Operations
Scott Leslie Mann (Conservative, Centre-right): While the £1.7 million is welcome, may I ask for advice and guidance for local authorities who might come under increasing pressure from the huge number of new blue badge applications? What advice can the Minister to give to local authorities such as Cornwall?
Blue Badge Scheme: Hidden Disabilities — House of Commons, 2019-07-18
Topic: Law and Crime
Michael Tyrone Ellis (Conservative, Centre-right): Yes. First, the fraudulent use of blue badges is a criminal matter and that can be dealt with accordingly, as one would expect. As for those who park in disabled parking spaces when they are not permitted to do so, such infractions ought to be dealt with by the supervisory authority, and that can be by way of fines.
Blue Badge Scheme: Hidden Disabilities — House of Commons, 2019-07-18
Topic: Transportation
Michael Tyrone Ellis (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Gentleman raises an important point. We expect those who are charged with enforcing our parking regulations to be sympathetic to these issues and alive to the fact that there will be people with non-visible disabilities who are perfectly entitled to use a blue badge.