argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
G20 and COP26 World Leaders Summit — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Energy
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (Conservative, Centre-right): Yes, I passionately agree with that. GKN does an amazing job across the country, particularly in delivering some of the most difficult solutions, such as sustainable aviation. We need to ensure that we have the ecosystem of gigafactories and electric vehicle manufacturing capabilities, and all the supply chains here in Britain, but with an energy cost that allows those businesses to be competitive. That applies to steel, automotive and everybody else, and I am afraid that, at the moment, the differential between our domestic users’ electricity costs and industrial energy costs is too high, and we have to fix it.
G20 and COP26 World Leaders Summit — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Environment
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend is completely right. Planting a tree for the jubilee is a wonderful thing to do; we should all be doing it. We want to plant 36,000 hectares of trees every year as part of our contribution—one of the many ways we are contributing—to the fight against climate change, and to beautify our landscape.
G20 and COP26 World Leaders Summit — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Foreign Trade
Mark Julian Francis Pawsey (Conservative, Centre-right): The UK can be very proud of the commitments that we have already made, but some of our actions are in danger of making our manufacturing and particularly our heavy industry uncompetitive. May I ask the Prime Minister once again whether there is any significance in the absence from COP26 of leaders of our industrial competitors such as China and Russia? Is he confident that they can be persuaded to do more after the conference to provide a more level playing field?
G20 and COP26 World Leaders Summit — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: International Affairs
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank my hon. Friend for the point that he makes, and I understand why he should be anxious, but I talked to both President Xi and President Putin and it was clear: they said that the pandemic precluded them from coming. I understand the situation that they are in. They have very senior negotiators in Glasgow as we speak—Xie is a very senior operative in the Chinese system—and we have to hope for results. In the end, the change is going to be driven not just by the feelings of people in the western democracies, but by the political pressure and the pressure from business that is already being felt in China, and in Russia as well.
G20 and COP26 World Leaders Summit — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Environment
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (Conservative, Centre-right): I congratulate Scottish tree-planting groups on the initiatives that they have taken. The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right that huge numbers of trees are planted in Scotland. We want to see the rest of the UK catch up and do better; I am afraid that the rates did decline a bit during the pandemic. We have to accelerate. What my hon. Friend the Member for Colne Valley (Jason McCartney) said just now about "Plant a tree for the jubilee" is absolutely right.
G20 and COP26 World Leaders Summit — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Energy
David Thomas Morris (Conservative, Centre-right): Later today in this Chamber, we will talk about nuclear. That shows that the Government are now looking forward to the future—we have two nuclear power stations in Heysham—but I would also like to draw to the Prime Minister’s attention the wondrous work that we are doing to prepare for the Eden project in Morecambe. I know that I invited him last week at Prime Minister’s questions, but I am still pushing it: Boris, come and see us in Morecambe.
G20 and COP26 World Leaders Summit — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Energy
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank my hon. Friend for his unrelenting invitation. Of course I will do my utmost to oblige him; he is a great campaigner for clean power. As he knows, we are taking forward plans for SMRs as well.
G20 and COP26 World Leaders Summit — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Transportation
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (Conservative, Centre-right): We are investing massively in rail in the way that I described at PMQs earlier, not just with HS2, but with Northern Powerhouse Rail and the integrated rail plan. The hon. Lady objects to domestic air travel, but the vision that she should support is the idea of moving away from using tonnes of kerosene to hurl planes into the air. We can do it with other approaches, and that is what we should be following.
G20 and COP26 World Leaders Summit — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Environment
Derek Gordon Thomas (Conservative, Centre-right): I welcome the Prime Minister’s leadership around the world, particularly in getting the world’s biggest polluters to reduce their carbon footprint. My constituents are keen to move forward and transition to a decarbonised lifestyle. Does he agree that getting information to them is key? There are many times when all of us, as consumers, purchase things from China that may well be available here in the UK, but we do not understand their in-built carbon footprint. Does he agree that information about carbon on items that we purchase is important for consumers?
G20 and COP26 World Leaders Summit — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Environment
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (Conservative, Centre-right): Schools in Cornwall that I have been talking to have a fantastic understanding of what Cornwall is doing to cut carbon. There are amazing projects in Cornwall, and we are also making sure that in education—in classes—kids understand the in-built carbon cost of the goods that they buy.
G20 and COP26 World Leaders Summit — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Environment
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (Conservative, Centre-right): I do not know what planet the hon. Gentleman has been on. He is totally wrong. This Government have helped to cut the UK’s emissions of carbon dioxide by almost half from 1990 levels, which is an astonishing thing to have done. We have the most ambitious nationally determined contribution of any country in the EU—78% by 2035 on 1990 levels—and we are doing it through all the measures that he knows. Has he not heard about what we are going to do on zero-emission vehicles or what we are doing on our power emissions? I think he needs to look at what is happening. Yes, of course there is more to do. As for green bonds, we issued one the other day and got £10 billion out of it—so just keep up.
G20 and COP26 World Leaders Summit — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Energy
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (Conservative, Centre-right): I agree 100%. I am looking forward to seeing the Westfield PODs and their means of conveying human beings around, although I cannot quite imagine what they are. What we want in this country is regulators for growth, and for green growth. We need a much more proactive approach that engages with brilliant ideas like that.
G20 and COP26 World Leaders Summit — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Transportation
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (Conservative, Centre-right): What we are doing is a general programme of Beeching reversals around the country. I will get back to the hon. Lady as soon as I can about what is happening in Poulton, but this is the biggest investment in rail for a century or more.
G20 and COP26 World Leaders Summit — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Environment
Henry Edward Millar Smith (Conservative, Centre-right): An estimated 15% of global carbon emissions come from livestock production around the world—more than all transportation put together. On the former, what discussions have been had at COP26 with our international partners on reductions? On the latter, what discussions have there been about the rest of the world taking the lead from the United Kingdom in sustainable aviation technology?
G20 and COP26 World Leaders Summit — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Environment
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (Conservative, Centre-right): On livestock emissions, my hon. Friend is right that methane is a very powerful greenhouse gas. It degrades quite fast, so it is not as bad as CO2 in some ways, but we do need to cut methane emissions and we have committed to doing it by 30%. Agriculture is a particularly difficult problem, but there are ways of doing that, without moving away from livestock farming. There are things we can do with breeding and other techniques to reduce methane emissions and we are certainly looking at that.
G20 and COP26 World Leaders Summit — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Environment
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Gentleman has made an incredibly important point. There are two ways of holding Governments to account, whether they are the Governments of China, Brazil or Russia, or indeed ourselves. First, it is not only the Governments who have signed up, but corporations—the big commodities corporations, such as Cargill. They have agreed no longer to use products that are sourced as a result of deforestation, and consumers will hold them to account, as well as Governments, for what they do Secondly, the financial institutions, worth trillions—Barclays, Aviva, and many others around the world—have agreed that they will not finance projects that depend on deforestation. Again, their investors and shareholders, and everyone involved with them, will hold them to account for what they do. If they cheat and invest in deforestation, they will suffer, because, as I said to the House earlier, what is changing now is the power of the consumer, the power of the voters, the power of the world —the power of those who want their Governments to do the right thing now.
G20 and COP26 World Leaders Summit — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Environment
Simon Robert Maurice Baynes (Conservative, Centre-right): Will the Prime Minister join me in congratulating the staff and pupils at Ysgol Dinas Brân school in Llangollen, whom I visited recently, on the excellent work that they are doing in studying climate change and working closely with Denbighshire County Council to ensure that their school operates on a carbon-neutral basis?
G20 and COP26 World Leaders Summit — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Energy
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (Conservative, Centre-right): We talk all the time to the oil and gas industry, which has a great and proud history in this country. I believe that the future for the industry—for hydrocarbons—is moving beyond the old combustion approach and towards the extraction of clean power. That is the direction in which we should be going.
G20 and COP26 World Leaders Summit — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Environment
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (Conservative, Centre-right): We will continue to push on the net zero dates. Although I agree with the hon. Gentleman’s characterisation of those countries’ targets, I think we also need to look at what both of them are saying about what they will do pre-2030. As the right hon. Member for Ashton-under-Lyne (Angela Rayner) pointed out, that is the key issue on which we need to focus. The Indians have now made a big commitment to decarbonising their power system by 2030, and the hon. Gentleman has heard what we have already said in the House about the Chinese commitment to "peak" CO2 output in 2030 or before. The question is, how long before? Both those countries have made substantial progress, but obviously it is not yet enough.
G20 and COP26 World Leaders Summit — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Energy
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (Conservative, Centre-right): As the hon. Gentleman knows, I was very attracted to the Swansea tidal lagoon model, but it is extremely expensive for the energy it produces. I see Opposition Members shaking their heads. If they can produce plans that show a more economical way of doing it, I shall be only too happy to study them.
G20 and COP26 World Leaders Summit — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Environment
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (Conservative, Centre-right): It is precisely for the sake of that generation—with whom, by the way, every member of this Government and, I am sure, Members throughout the House engage all the time on this issue—that we are doing this I am actually starting to think that we can fix this. I was pretty gloomy a while back, but I do now think that we have the technology, and we certainly have the finance. I think we have a growing package of solutions that we can bring to bear, and I think it will be of massive benefit to young children growing up in this country. I hope so, because one of the things I worry about is that young people in this country are mentally very badly affected by the prospect of serious climate change. I think that it preys on their minds. We need to lift that burden from them and show them that there is a more hopeful alternative—and I really think that it is starting to appear.
Committee on Standards — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Government Operations
Jacob William Rees-Mogg (Conservative, Centre-right): I beg to move, That this House– (1) approves the Third Report of the Committee on Standards (HC 797); (2) endorses the recommendation in paragraph 212; and (3) accordingly suspends Mr Owen Paterson from the service of the House for a period of thirty sitting days As Leader of the House of Commons, it is important that I move this motion to facilitate debate on the report by the Committee on Standards. I have said before that Members of Parliament must uphold the highest standards in public life, which is why the process for this House to consider standards infractions is of the utmost importance. It must be fair and robust, and it must command respect on both sides of the House. There must be tough and robust checks against lobbying for profit, and there must be a proper process to scrutinise and, if necessary, discipline those who do not follow the rules However, it is also my role as Leader of the House to listen to the concerns and thoughts of Members on both sides of the House, which are now too numerous to ignore. Since the publication of this report, many hon. Members have expressed their concern about the way in which it was prepared, as is evident in the amendment to the motion tabled by my right hon. Friend the Member for South Northamptonshire (Dame Andrea Leadsom) Today I come not to defend my right hon. Friend the Member for North Shropshire (Mr Paterson) but to consider the process by which he has been tried. It is not for me to judge him—others have done that—but was the process a fair one? "Let justice be done though the heavens fall." Any disciplinary process concerned, as it is, with people’s jobs and livelihoods must be fair and must respect basic principles of natural justice. The concerns raised with me in this case and other standards cases by hon. Members from Government and Opposition parties include: the lack of examination of witnesses; the unused mechanism for the appointment of an investigatory panel; the interpretation of the rules relating to whistleblowing; the length of time taken and the lack of continuity in participation and investigations; the application of aggravating factors; and the absence of the right of appeal.
Committee on Standards — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Government Operations
Jacob William Rees-Mogg (Conservative, Centre-right): The Committee on Standards is clearly not an appeal process, because it is the Committee’s report, not the commissioner’s report, that comes before us. The commissioner is the adviser to the Committee and is supervised by the Committee I wish this Chamber, as my hon. Friend suggests, were the court of appeal, but as this matter has been discussed we have seen how quickly what happens in this Chamber becomes partisan. [Laughter.] Opposition Members cackle and crow, and they have made my point. It is a sadness to me that this Chamber is not, as one would hope it could be, the apolitical court of appeal for standards cases, but the Opposition have absolutely no desire to do that. We therefore need to consider an independent appeals process, as we have with the Independent Expert Panel.
Committee on Standards — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Government Operations
Jacob William Rees-Mogg (Conservative, Centre-right): I am afraid the hon. Lady has not troubled to read the amendment, which does not overturn the report of the Standards Committee. The amendment asks whether there should be a form of appeal and sets up a Committee to consider how the standards process is working. As I said, there have been problems with the process On the examination, or non-examination, of witnesses, paragraphs (6) to (10) of Standing Order No. 150 allow the commissioner to appoint an investigatory panel to assist in establishing the facts relevant to an investigation. The Standards Committee is also able to request that the commissioner appoints such a panel. Under these provisions, the commissioner chairs the committee with two assessors, who advise the commissioner but have no responsibility for the findings. One would be a legal assessor and the other a senior Member of the House who would advise on parliamentary matters and be appointed by you, Mr Speaker. The commissioner would determine the procedures and could appoint counsel to assist the panel The Member against whom the complaint had been made would be entitled to be heard in person and would have the opportunity to call witnesses and examine other witnesses. At the conclusion of proceedings, the commissioner would report as usual. The legal assessor would report to the Standards Committee as to the extent to which the proceedings had been consistent with the principles of natural justice, which of course include the right to a fair trial under a proper and just process, and the Member assessor might report on the extent to which the proceedings had regard to the custom and practice of the House and its Members.
Committee on Standards — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Government Operations
Jacob William Rees-Mogg (Conservative, Centre-right): That is the point I made earlier about the unfortunate state of affairs whereby this House does not work as a court of appeal, but, regrettably, becomes partisan, which reinforces the need to have an independent body.
Committee on Standards — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Government Operations
William Nigel Paul Cash (Conservative, Centre-right): My right hon. Friend was interrupted in the course of his speech by an intervention; he was about to say something regarding the question of contested cases, which is at the heart of this issue. Report after report, including by the Joint Committee on Parliamentary Privilege, has said that in such cases criteria for fairness have to be applied. As he has so adequately stated, this investigatory panel does provide for such a state of affairs but it was not applied by the Committee in this case.
Committee on Standards — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Government Operations
Jacob William Rees-Mogg (Conservative, Centre-right): The right hon. Gentleman is absolutely right, and this is one of the key things that the Committee will be asked to look at, to see whether it can clarify the interpretation on the whistleblowing exemption Let me return to Standing Order No. 150, which appears to provide a mechanism for the investigation of contentious cases that respects natural justice, ensures that legal counsel is appointed, is appropriate for what is a quasi-judicial process, and introduces significant checks and balances into the investigation, such as the appointment of a separate member by the Speaker to act as an assessor and the right of the Member being investigated to call witnesses and be able to examine other witnesses, rather than leaving this to the discretion of the Commissioner. In a case where so many witnesses and so many Members have made their concerns known, it is unfortunate that the Commissioner did not appoint such a panel. Indeed, the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards and the Committee on Standards have never opted to use this mechanism, despite having had many contentious cases before them.
Committee on Standards — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Law and Crime
Michael Louis David Fabricant (Conservative, Centre-right): Some 17 individuals have come forward saying that they wish to give oral evidence, but that was refused. Is not the point that, whether or not someone is guilty of paid advocacy, there must be justice and that justice must be seen to be done? In this case, many right-minded people would say that justice has not been seen to be done.
Committee on Standards — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Government Operations
William David Wiggin (Conservative, Centre-right): Once again, we are seeing this become partisan. We are examining the cases of the individual, but for me the key thing that is not right is that even the Commissioner is in an impossible position. Therefore, we desperately need to reform a system that puts the staff in that place.
Committee on Standards — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Government Operations
Jacob William Rees-Mogg (Conservative, Centre-right): I am grateful to my hon. Friend, because that helps me to get back to the point about process. The 2015 Committee on Standards report on "The Standards System in the House of Commons" noted that the provisions relating to the panel had "never been invoked", questioned why the investigatory panel was "necessary" and recommended that the provisions be "reviewed". However, the House never chose to remove these provisions, so this was an active mechanism open to the Commissioner and the Committee, which they decided not to use. It is the Government’s belief that it is right to allow the House to revisit whether, to ensure natural justice, our procedures should be changed to give Members of Parliament the same or similar rights—including the right of examination of witnesses—as apply to those subject to investigations of alleged misconduct in other workplaces and professions.
Committee on Standards — House of Commons, 2021-11-03
Topic: Government Operations
Bernard Christison Jenkin (Conservative, Centre-right): Before my right hon. Friend carries on, may I add that anybody who is complaining about the amendment to the motion is complaining about the procedures of this House as they exist in respect of standards cases? All standards cases come to this House for this House to dispose of as it thinks fit. That is what this House is debating now and that is perfectively legitimate. The reason why the mechanism to which my right hon. Friend referred has never been used is that, unlike what was recommended by the Committee on Standards in Public Life, the commissioner would chair the panel. For it to be an independent appeals process, it should be chaired independently. It has never been used because it would be so likely to arrive at the same conclusion.