argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Local Authority Funding: Discussions with Secretary of State — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Government Operations
Questions: What recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government on the adequacy of allocations of funding for local authorities.
Peter Christopher Dowd (Labour, Centre-left): Clearly those discussions were not very productive, were they? I can tell hon. Members that, according to the LGA, the likely outcome is 6.6, 6.6, 6.5, 6.4, 6.2, 10, 10, 9 and 4. I am referring not to Olympic ice skating marks, but to the additional millions that will be lost respectively by the councils of the hon. Members I listed. In all, 37 councils of the 50 new Tory MPs—that is 70%—are set to lose millions under the Government’s so-called fair funding formula. Did the Chief Secretary mention that to his new colleagues, or has he been too busy keeping an eye on the potential job vacancies?
Local Authority Funding: Discussions with Secretary of State — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Government Operations
Questions: What recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government on the adequacy of allocations of funding for local authorities.
Margaret Olivia Hillier (Labour, Centre-left): It was extraordinary to hear the Treasury Minister talk about the biggest year-on-year increase in funding after a decade of major cuts. He knows, because he can do the maths, that that is nowhere near making any recompense. The Public Accounts Committee looked in detail at local government spending and we concluded that in simple terms, it was being squeezed massively, particularly for children’s and adult’s social services. When will he acknowledge that for many things that his Government purport to want to deliver, local government is key and that it needs sustainable and increased funding to make up for the cuts of the previous decade?
Equity of Economic Opportunity — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Social Welfare
Lyn Carol Brown (Labour, Centre-left): This is beyond parody. The reality is that after 10 years of Tory rule, the five richest families in this country own more wealth than 13 million of us put together. Fourteen million of us live in poverty. Two out of three of those are in working households. Childcare, transport and the cost of rent hold millions back, so will the Chancellor accept some tests for his Budget? Will he cut child poverty? Will he cut homelessness? Will he end the need for food banks? Will his Budget match his words? The hell it will.
Co-operative and Mutual Businesses: Tax Contribution — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Macroeconomics
James McMahon (Labour, Centre-left): It is a matter of fact that the three largest co-ops in this country pay more tax than Facebook, Amazon and Caffé Nero combined, so not only are they creating jobs; they are also paying fairly into the Exchequer. Will the Minister meet me and representatives from the co-op and mutuals sector to discuss that part of the economy and make sure that Britain can thrive in an inclusive way?
Loan Charge 2019 — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Macroeconomics
Ruth Margaret Cadbury (Labour, Centre-left): The Treasury has accepted some of Sir Amyas Morse’s recommendations, but there is confusion about some of them. A constituent of mine got caught in a disguised renumeration scheme before 2010, and yet he is still not convinced that he is in the clear and has that fear hanging over him. What does the Financial Secretary have to say about that?
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Macroeconomics
John Martin McDonnell (Labour, Centre-left): In the last month we have seen the Financial Times predicting that the Chancellor will miss his balanced budget target, and today we have seen zero growth in the economy. At the same time, Mr Dominic Cummings has demanded cuts in taxes and massive spending commitments, so the Chancellor has resorted to floating a possible raid on middle-income pensions, a mansion tax—once described as Marxist—and a 5% cuts round to find some money to pay for Mr Cummings’s demands. Yet in the real world out there, the victims of Wonga, the payday loan company, were told a fortnight ago that they would receive less than 5% of the compensation that they are owed. Will the Chancellor take a break from his arm-wrestling with Mr Cummings, and introduce measures to compensate the Wonga victims fully?
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Transportation
Questions: Many in financial services will warmly welcome the Chancellor’s remarks in the papers yesterday about equivalence arrangements, but does he agree that the real value to those arrangements is in the length of the revocation period? Will he therefore press for revocation notices of a minimum of a year and preferably three years?; Funding for coal mining ended in 2012, but it carries on for oil and gas, as we saw at the recent Africa summit and in the lobbying for the Petrofac oil refinery in Bahrain. When is the Chancellor going to end funding for fossil fuel projects and take the action that is needed to tackle the climate crisis?; Over the past few weeks, I have met a number of businesses in the Meon Valley whose growth is being held back by poor internet connectivity. What funding exists to help businesses in rural areas to boost their productivity and growth by improving their broadband?; Will the Chancellor ensure, in the Budget in March, that the automotive manufacturing sector gets the support it requires? He will know that there was a decline of 14% in our manufacturing production last year, which represents a big hit to the Treasury. Will he put in place the support to ensure a transition from fossil fuels, so that we can still produce vehicles such as diesel-powered units in good numbers while supporting the switch to electric vehicles?; Last year my town of Southport benefited from a £25 million town deal. What more is my right hon. Friend doing to help other towns up and down the country to level up?; In September last year, standing at the Dispatch Box the Chancellor declared that austerity was at an end, but just last month he demanded that each Department cut 5% of its budget—hardly a glowing endorsement of the end of austerity. Will the Chancellor now admit that the Government never had any intention of ending austerity or easing the pain felt by millions around the country?; Creditor enforcement action can greatly exacerbate the problems that people going through mental health crises can experience. May I commend the Chancellor and the Economic Secretary for the breathing space initiative, which will help to ease the pressure on those people and so many more?
Benjamin Peter James Bradshaw (Labour, Centre-left): Depending on which briefing to today’s newspapers was accurate, the infrastructure announcement will fund a grand total of either 250 or 1,000 miles of new designated cycleway. That is to be compared with the 1,800 being provided by the Labour Mayor in Manchester alone. How can a small city such as Exeter hope to get any of the help, resources or the powers it needs to deliver on the cycling infrastructure as it desperately wants to do?
Transport Infrastructure — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Transportation
Graham Eric Stringer (Labour, Centre-left): I very much welcome the announcement as far as HS2 and the integration into HS3 are concerned. Does the Prime Minister agree that his statement could be improved and bring more immediate jobs to the north of England if, as well as building HS2 from London to the north, we also started building HS2 from the north to the south? Finally, for real ambition, would he agree that HS2 should go to Scotland, which would help to unite the two countries?
Transport Infrastructure — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Transportation
Lilian Rachel Greenwood (Labour, Centre-left): The confirmation that the full HS2 route has been given the go-ahead is welcome news, and there is a strong case for building the Birmingham to east midlands part early, but if the project is to deliver on its potential for our region, we need assurances that the phase 2b Bill will receive Royal Assent in this Parliament, and that it will not be delayed further or downgraded to cut costs. Will the Prime Minister give us those assurances today?
Transport Infrastructure — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Transportation
Charlotte Louise Nichols (Labour, Centre-left): On balance, I welcome the news that HS2 has been given the go-ahead, for the capacity gains that will benefit the north-west region and for the construction and rail supply firms in my constituency, which I hope will receive a fair shot at winning contracts associated with the project. However, my constituents in Culcheth, Croft, Risley and Hollins Green in particular will be looking for assurances that the unnecessary Golborne spur will be removed from the proposed route. This is an issue that transcends party affiliations and on which local MPs are in agreement. Will the Prime Minister give us those assurances?
Transport Infrastructure — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Transportation
Edward Samuel Miliband (Labour, Centre-left): May I ask the Prime Minister about the prospects for change in relation to the eastern leg of phase 2b? The original HS2 vision was to serve and regenerate our towns, but towns in South Yorkshire are facing all of the pain and none, or very little, of the gain. May I commend to him the HS2 North concept, which local campaigners came up with—they got there first—and which has an integrated plan to help towns such as Doncaster and Mexborough?
Transport Infrastructure — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Transportation
Lucy Maria Powell (Labour, Centre-left): I strongly welcome the announcement today on HS2, but let us be clear: the question mark was written by the Prime Minister and his Government, and it should not have been written at all. Under the terms of the review we are now seeing, can he ensure that the full benefits of NPR and HS2 are fully integrated at Manchester Piccadilly station and that no stone is left unturned in making sure that that can happen?
Transport Infrastructure — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Transportation
Chinyelu Susan Onwurah (Labour, Centre-left): In London, thanks to Sadiq Khan’s Hopper fare, I can travel across the entire Greater London area on two buses—up to 30 miles—for £1.50. In Newcastle, £1.50 will barely get me four stops up West Road. Will this funding bring north-eastern bus fares into line with those in London, or is this all bluff and bluster signifying nothing?
Transport Infrastructure — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Transportation
George Edward Howarth (Labour, Centre-left): The devil, as the Prime Minister well knows, is in the detail. May I cautiously, though, welcome the announcement on HS2, and the announcement about linking up the northern powerhouse great cities? In the course of that, he said, "and Liverpool". Could he give us some indication as to what he meant by that?
Transport Infrastructure — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Transportation
Clive James Charles Betts (Labour, Centre-left): I welcome the commitment both to HS2 and to Northern Powerhouse Rail, but in neither case did the Prime Minister mention Sheffield. Could he therefore confirm that the Sheffield loop will go ahead as planned in HS2, and that the Northern Powerhouse Rail improvements are about not just Manchester to Leeds but Manchester to Sheffield as well?
Transport Infrastructure — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Transportation
Alison McGovern (Labour, Centre-left): It is kind of funny, in a way, to see the Prime Minister come here to gleefully re-announce a project that he himself and his office tried to put a stop to. But while he is in train set-building mode, can I draw his attention to the Wrexham to Bidston line that would connect north Wales and Liverpool? Will he put some extra investment in there so that we can speed up improvements?
Transport Infrastructure — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Transportation
Stephen Nathan Kinnock (Labour, Centre-left): The HS2 project, albeit somewhat shambolically handled, is great news for England, but it shows once again the contempt in which this Government hold the people of Wales. The entire budget for electrifying the main line to Swansea would be less than 1% of the vast sums that are being talked about today. So will the Prime Minister commit today to electrifying the main line to Swansea, or will he continue to hold the people of Wales in contempt?
Transport Infrastructure — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Education
James McMahon (Labour, Centre-left): This is welcome, if delayed, news, in particular for Manchester and Greater Manchester. Will the Prime Minister ensure that metro Mayors and council leaders are hard-wired into the review? Will he also consider starting at Manchester and meeting in the middle, to ensure that we get the benefits early on, particularly for education, skills and jobs in my town?
Transport Infrastructure — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Transportation
Catherine McKinnell (Labour, Centre-left): Newcastle and the north-east need this infrastructure investment in both HS2 and Northern Powerhouse Rail without any further delay. Will the Prime Minister make an immediately deliverable improvement to our national infrastructure, to ensure that the north-east and Newcastle are NPR and HS2-ready, by investing in our east coast main line, which needs urgent infrastructure investment between York and Newcastle?
Transport Infrastructure — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Transportation
Michael Joseph Patrick Kane (Labour, Centre-left): Despite going under my house, HS2 will reduce journey times from Manchester airport in my constituency to London from two hours 24 minutes to 59 minutes, opening up a plethora of opportunities for the poor people of the south-east and the great city of Manchester. The Prime Minister dodged the question from my hon. Friends the Members for Oldham West and Royton (Jim McMahon) and for Blackley and Broughton (Graham Stringer). If he wants to level up and have a northern powerhouse, why does he not start building the line from Manchester down?
Transport Infrastructure — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Transportation
Judith Mary Cummins (Labour, Centre-left): I welcome the announcement that the northern section of HS2 will go ahead because, crucially, it will be integrated with NPR. As the Prime Minister said, this country has been held back by inadequate infrastructure, so does he agree that Northern Powerhouse Rail must include a city centre stop in Bradford?
Transport Infrastructure — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Transportation
Alexander James Jorden Norris (Labour, Centre-left): For four decades, the east midlands economy has been losing skilled work, which has caused extraordinary damage to our communities. HS2 is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to reverse that decline and add tens of thousands of skilled jobs to our community. The Prime Minister has taken a difficult but welcome decision. Can he reassure east midlands people that there will not be any unnecessary delay to HS2b and that Midlands Engine Rail will be woven into the scheme?
Transport Infrastructure — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Transportation
Matthew Raymond Western (Labour, Centre-left): When we first talked about HS2 10 years ago, we were not talking about a climate emergency. Given that the landscape has changed in that respect, the Government should invest significantly more than proposed in sub-regional transport systems such as buses and cycle routes, as the French and continentals are doing.
Transport Infrastructure — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Transportation
Christopher John Bryant (Labour, Centre-left): Is the Prime Minister seriously suggesting that there will not be a single extra penny for Wales as a result of today’s announcements? Before he gives me any bluster about anything else, the truth of the matter is that they promised that they were going to electrify the line all the way to Swansea. They said that by 2017 the valleys lines to my constituency would be electrified. None of that came to pass. All we want is a new railway line in the Rhondda Fach, and to open the tunnel from Blaencwm to Blaengwynfi. Will he promise that today?
Transport Infrastructure — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Transportation
Emma Ann Hardy (Labour, Centre-left): We have had 10 years of rail downgrades in Hull, from cancelling electrification to older trains taking longer to arrive at their destination. While I would like to welcome Northern Powerhouse Rail, I am slightly disappointed that whenever the Prime Minister mentions it he does so between Leeds and Manchester, as we all know that it begins in Hull. From now on, I would like him to talk about it coming from Hull, and will he tell me when we will see the benefits in my constituency?
Transport Infrastructure — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Transportation
Andrew Francis Slaughter (Labour, Centre-left): With Birmingham airport 30 minutes from Old Oak we will not need a third runway at Heathrow, I am sure the Prime Minister agrees. However, will HS2 terminate at Old Oak for three years while Euston is under construction, as the press are reporting and, if so, what will he do about the disruption and overcrowding at Old Oak? It is already the biggest development and an interchange site, and is very happy with its historic name, by the way.
Transport Infrastructure — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Transportation
Ruth Margaret Cadbury (Labour, Centre-left): To double the rate of cycling from 2% to 4% of all trips will, according to Government figures, require £5 billion-worth of funding at least, so how much of today’s announcement of £5 billion for buses, cycling and walking will actually be spent on cycling?
Wuhan Coronavirus — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Labor
Clive Stanley Efford (Labour, Centre-left): Should the outbreak become more widespread, will the Secretary of State say what advice he is preparing for employers, because many people, such as those on zero-hours contracts, will be severely financially penalised, which will create a big incentive for them to turn up for work when they are feeling ill? Will he say what preparations he is making for employers to avoid those circumstances?
Business Statement — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Law and Crime
Valerie Carol Marian Vaz (Labour, Centre-left): I thank the Leader of the House for advance sight of the emergency business statement. The Opposition repeat that terrorist prisoners should not be released automatically but be subject to parole board assessment before release while serving their sentences I have three quick questions for the Leader of the House. First, when is the Bill likely to be published? Will it be published immediately after the statement? Secondly, what sort of timetable, in terms of protected time, does he have in mind for tomorrow? Thirdly, will he clarify if there will be a further statement on what resources will be available for the Parole Board and probation service? We want to keep our citizens safe.
Prisoners (Disclosure of Information About Victims) Bill — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Law and Crime
Marie Elizabeth Rimmer (Labour, Centre-left): This is a commendable step brought about through Marie McCourt’s tremendous efforts over 32 years and the efforts of my hon. Friend the Member for St Helens North (Conor McGinn). Does my hon. Friend the Member for Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport (Luke Pollard) agree that although we still have a long way to go, this is a huge step in the right direction for justice for victims?
Prisoners (Disclosure of Information About Victims) Bill — House of Commons, 2020-02-11
Topic: Law and Crime
Luke Pollard (Labour, Centre-left): I thank my hon. Friend for that intervention, and the way in which Ministers have merged two campaign asks in a single piece of natural justice is quite sensible I have some concerns. Personally, I think that Vanessa George should still be behind bars. I do not see how a woman who refuses to name the children she abused should be let out and, indeed, I believe that if someone abuses a child, the state should say that for the childhood of that victim the perpetrator should be behind bars. That would give those children the entirety of what remains of their childhood in a protected space away from the accused. The fact that Vanessa George has been released without naming the children she abused shows that something was not right with the law and the experience of many of the parents throughout this process has been to stumble across deficiencies and difficulties in how it has worked. That needs to be addressed.
Terrorism — House of Commons, 2020-02-10
Topic: Law and Crime
Questions: What steps the Government are taking to ensure that (a) law enforcement bodies, (b) police officers and (c) intelligence agencies have the tools they need to tackle terrorism.
Nicklaus Thomas-Symonds (Labour, Centre-left): The Minister has just referred to the Prevent programme. This week, it is a year since the Counter-Terrorism and Border Security Act 2019 received Royal Assent. Of course, that Act provided for an independent review of the Prevent programme. In the last year, the Government have appointed one reviewer, who has had to resign from post given previous views that he had expressed about Prevent, and we are left today—a year later—without a reviewer in place. The Minister is talking about decisive action. When will that reviewer be appointed?
Terrorism — House of Commons, 2020-02-10
Topic: Law and Crime
Questions: What steps the Government are taking to ensure that (a) law enforcement bodies, (b) police officers and (c) intelligence agencies have the tools they need to tackle terrorism.
Barry John Sheerman (Labour, Centre-left): Surely we should have a programme giving young people who might be attracted into terrorism other creative things to do in the community. Would the Minister think about diverting some of the tens of millions of pounds flowing from the plastic bag charge into community action that would involve young people and replace some of the dreadful cuts in youth services that we have seen in recent years?
Violent Crime: Young People — House of Commons, 2020-02-10
Topic: Law and Crime
Louise Margaret Haigh (Labour, Centre-left): Last year, Labour attempted to amend the Offensive Weapons Bill to ban the open sale of knives and require shops to lock them behind cabinets, as we currently require them to do for cigarettes. The Government refused those amendments. Last week, Sudesh Amman walked into a shop on Streatham high street, picked up a knife from the display and stabbed two people. This weekend, that shop was still openly displaying knives and machetes by the front door. Will the Government now think again?
Violent Crime: Young People — House of Commons, 2020-02-10
Topic: Social Welfare
Alexander James Jorden Norris (Labour, Centre-left): Good youth services are the frontline against youth violence, but this week we see yet another local government settlement that means there is a decade’s worth of erosion of funding for youth services. What will the Home Office do differently to encourage the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to properly fund youth services or to put its own money into a good universal offer across all our communities?
Families of Police Officers — House of Commons, 2020-02-10
Topic: Law and Crime
Christopher John Bryant (Labour, Centre-left): One thing that families would quite like to see is prosecuting authorities and the police themselves taking it much more seriously when there are assaults on police officers, even if they are relatively minor ones. Otherwise, there seems to be a sort of acceptance that a degree of violence is in the day job of a police officer, and that must surely be wrong. Why is the legislation introduced two years ago still not being used effectively by the Crown Prosecution Service?