argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Strategic Defence and Security Review — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Mark Lancaster (Conservative, Centre-right): Since SDSR 2015, we have cut steel on the first Type 26 and signed the contract to buy new Apache helicopters. We are on track to deliver by the end of 2020: initial operating capability for carrier strike; maritime patrol aircraft; and to field Ajax. We have launched our innovation initiative, and published both our shipbuilding and our international defence engagement strategies.
Strategic Defence and Security Review — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Mark Lancaster (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Gentleman is quite right that Britain is changing, and it is very important that our armed forces represent modern Britain. There is a very impressive strategy in place in which—he is quite right—the target is for 10% of recruits to be from the BAME community and 15% to be women. We have had varying success across our three forces. The Royal Air Force is doing the best by far but, year on year, we are seeing improvements, and I am determined that we shall continue to recruit role models to help this process.
Strategic Defence and Security Review — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Philip Thomas Hollobone (Conservative, Centre-right): By 2020, the commitments set out in SDSR 2015 will be funded by a defence budget totalling a record £40 billion. The Government’s welcome commitment to spending 2% of our economy on defence is the minimum NATO requirement. Is the Government’s welcome commitment to that rubbing off on our fellow NATO counterparts?
Shipbuilding/Type 31e Frigate — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Harriett Mary Morison Baldwin (Conservative, Centre-right): We published our national shipbuilding strategy in September. The very next day, we launched the programme for five new Type 31e frigates. We are currently considering at least 20 different proposals from industry across the UK.
Shipbuilding/Type 31e Frigate — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Harriett Mary Morison Baldwin (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend is an absolute champion for his county of Cornwall. He will be aware that we have started to announce the names of the Type 26 frigates with HMS Glasgow and HMS Belfast. Further names will be announced in due course. The Type 31e frigate will be named by the Royal Navy Ships Names and Badges Committee, and he has set out his claim today.
Shipbuilding/Type 31e Frigate — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Mark Julian Francis Pawsey (Conservative, Centre-right): The strategy announced by the Secretary of State will provide many opportunities for the supply chain, including for companies such as GE Energy in my constituency, which is currently working on the first batch of the Type 26—the global combat ship. Will the Minister say something about the timetable for the second batch of those vessels?
Shipbuilding/Type 31e Frigate — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Harriett Mary Morison Baldwin (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend highlights the importance of the supply chain right across the UK and the fact that, in a relatively landlocked part of the UK, so much work is pouring in from the frigate programme. We announced a £3.7 billion first batch of Type 26 frigates. We will be securing the necessary approvals to carry on negotiations for that contract and we will announce the second batch of five frigates early in the 2020s.
Shipbuilding/Type 31e Frigate — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Questions: Despite the challenges facing the UK steel industry, too many of the offshore patrol vessels used by the Royal Navy are being built with foreign steel. Can the Minister assure us that, as part of the national shipbuilding strategy, British steel will be put first when building new vessels?
Harriett Mary Morison Baldwin (Conservative, Centre-right): Well, honestly, every time I talk about our wonderful programme of shipbuilding in the UK, I hear nothing but doom and gloom from our friends on the Scottish nationalist Benches. In fact—and no one would believe this—there are currently 15 ships being built in Scotland, including the second of the two new aircraft carriers, two decades-worth of work on the frigate programme and five new offshore patrol vessels. Frankly, I do not know what I could do to keep these gentlemen and ladies happy.
Daesh — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Michael Fallon (Conservative, Centre-right): We are making significant progress. In Syria, Raqqa was freed from Daesh’s control on Friday. In Iraq, Mosul was liberated in July, and Tal Afar and Hawija followed very quickly thereafter. RAF strikes will continue against terrorist targets until they have been defeated in both Iraq and Syria. Only by pursuing this campaign can we help to reduce the terrorist threat to us here in Europe.
Daesh — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Royston Matthew Smith (Conservative, Centre-right): This campaign will evolve as coalition forces destroy and degrade Daesh strongholds in Syria and across the middle east. There are reports of Daesh activity in Libya. What plans does the Secretary of State have to ensure that when Daesh is defeated in one area, it does not have a resurgence in another?
Daesh — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Michael Fallon (Conservative, Centre-right): We are working with the international coalition. We will be meeting as coalition Defence Ministers in a few weeks’ time in Brussels to ensure that there is no emergence of Daesh in Libya or in other countries. So far as Libya itself is concerned, we are supporting the United Nations plan under the special representative of the Secretary-General, Ghassan Salamé.
Daesh — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Questions: I was in Iraqi Kurdistan for the recent referendum and had the privilege of meeting troops from 2nd Battalion the Mercian Regiment who are training the peshmerga in the fight against Daesh. I am bound to say that I was very impressed by what I saw, but given the Secretary of State’s positive and welcome assessment of the campaign, what next for our armed forces in the fight against Daesh?
Michael Fallon (Conservative, Centre-right): I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for his welcome for an Operation Shader medal, which we hope to start issuing next year. It will rightly recognise the contribution made, over three years now, by our servicemen and women in this very important campaign against the evil of our time. I have already commented publicly about the current criteria, which require both "risk and rigour" to have been undergone before service personnel are eligible for a medal. The nature of warfare is changing, so we are having another look at those criteria.
Army Personnel — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Mark Lancaster (Conservative, Centre-right): We are committed to maintaining the overall size of the armed forces, including an Army that is able to field a war-fighting division. While Army recruitment and retention remain challenging, over 8,000 people joined the regular Army last year and since April applications are over 20% higher compared with the same period last year.
Army Personnel — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Mark Lancaster (Conservative, Centre-right): No, I do not. It is important to note that the Army is currently 95% manned. I do accept that there are challenges. Having probably the highest employment rate we have had in recent years does not help when it comes to recruiting to the Army. There is also, as we discussed earlier, the changing nature of Britain, which means we have to fight harder to make sure that all parts of society will join the Army. However, this is also about the offer, and I must say that when the Leader of the Opposition says he cannot see a situation where he would deploy the Army overseas, that is hardly a good recruiting tool to get young people who want to join the Army to do exactly that.
Army Personnel — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Mark Lancaster (Conservative, Centre-right): The Army, as I say, is 95% recruited and quite capable of fulfilling all its commitments. I am pleased there will be some flexibility in how we apply pay—of course, we have the Armed Forces Pay Review Body, which sets it. It is important to have some flexibility so that we can attract people into the skill sets we are currently short of.
Army Personnel — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Andrew James Bridgen (Conservative, Centre-right): Can my hon. Friend confirm or deny whether there is any truth in the current media speculation that the UK armed forces are about to be subsumed into a European defence force to placate the European Union?
Army Personnel — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Mark Lancaster (Conservative, Centre-right): Of course, those are just some of the questions we are considering under the ongoing national security capability review, the purpose of which is to decide how best we can use the money we are investing in our armed forces to maximise their capability.
HMS Queen Elizabeth — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Harriett Mary Morison Baldwin (Conservative, Centre-right): HMS Queen Elizabeth sailed from Rosyth in June to commence her sea trials. She made her first entry into Portsmouth in August for a scheduled engineering period. Her second set of sea trials should begin this week, weather permitting. She remains on track to be accepted into the Royal Navy this year.
HMS Queen Elizabeth — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Harriett Mary Morison Baldwin (Conservative, Centre-right): I am pleased to be able to update the hon. Gentleman. As he will know, we already have 12 F-35 aircraft and they are already flying in the US. We will have 14 by the end of the year. Next year, we are on track to stand up the first squadron in the UK. I am pleased that I was able to announce last week that the F-35 has successfully completed the trials on the ski jump in the US and is now cleared to take off from the carrier.
Armed Forces: Pay — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Tobias Martin Ellwood (Conservative, Centre-right): The Opposition have a habit of spending money that they do not have. We need to take various things into consideration. Much as we would like to move forward with breaking the 1% pay cap, we have to bear in mind that the Armed Forces Pay Review Body takes into consideration banded progressive pay, subsidised accommodation, a range of allowances—including the X factor, which I am sure the hon. Gentleman will be aware of—and the basic salary, which remains competitive, as well as comparisons with the private sector. It is for the Armed Forces Pay Review Body to make its decisions, and we look forward to that.
Armed Forces: Pay — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Tobias Martin Ellwood (Conservative, Centre-right): I am not sure where the hon. Lady has been, but there is now that flexibility. There is no longer the pressure to remain within the 1%—it has been removed. I wish that her enthusiasm for the armed forces would rub off on the Leader of the Opposition, who has no support or respect for the armed forces, and no respect for NATO, and wants to get rid of our nuclear deterrent.
Armed Forces: Mental Health — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Health
Tobias Martin Ellwood (Conservative, Centre-right): We must recognise that historically mental health has not received the same attention as physical wellbeing. I am therefore pleased that in July we published our new mental health and wellbeing strategy, which comprehensively addresses this. I hope that that will lead to a cultural change in challenging the stigma and improving the mental fitness of our armed forces personnel and, indeed, their families.
Armed Forces: Mental Health — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Shailesh Lakhman Vara (Conservative, Centre-right): I am grateful to the Minister for those comments. Does he agree that it is important not only that we provide better treatment for our veterans, but that the public appreciate that the vast majority of veterans who leave the armed forces do so all the better for having served, rather than as damaged individuals?
Armed Forces: Mental Health — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Tobias Martin Ellwood (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend makes such an important point. I think that the whole House respects and reveres our armed forces, but we need to bury the myth that someone who joins the armed forces is more likely to have mental health problems, more likely to have post-traumatic stress disorder and more likely to commit suicide than the general population. That is absolutely not the case. We have 2.5 million veterans in this country, and 15,000 leave every single year. Of those, 90% get into jobs or education within six months. Of course some of them, through no fault of their own, require support, and we need to make sure that we provide it.
Armed Forces: Mental Health — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Leo Docherty (Conservative, Centre-right): Veterans have done their duty and we must ensure that we do ours by them. Can the Minister say a few words about what extra steps are being taken by the Armed Forces Covenant and Veterans Board to address this critical issue?
Armed Forces: Mental Health — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Tobias Martin Ellwood (Conservative, Centre-right): I am pleased to say that this was a manifesto commitment. We need to recognise that it is not just the MOD that looks after our veterans’ interests; that happens across Whitehall. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State will be chairing the first meeting of the board on Thursday My hon. Friend asks about the covenant, which is very important even though it is in its infancy. It encourages businesses to employ veterans and allow reservists to go on their training, and it provides deals for regular members of the armed forces.
Armed Forces: Mental Health — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Tobias Martin Ellwood (Conservative, Centre-right): I make it clear that if any hon. Member has such a situation, I would be more than delighted to make sure that we understand what support can be provided. That is the duty of this House, the MOD and the nation. Working out which way to turn can be confusing. There are 450 charities out there, and the Veterans Gateway programme, which was launched this July, provides that support. I would be more than delighted to meet the hon. Gentleman.
Armed Forces: Mental Health — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Tobias Martin Ellwood (Conservative, Centre-right): That is another example of a myth that we need to bust. I pay tribute to the local authorities and the charities that are doing their work. Where we are failing, if we are failing, is in not communicating where the support for our brave veterans is. That is something that we all need to work towards.
Amphibious Ships — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Mark Lancaster (Conservative, Centre-right): I, too, have read the speculation in the press, and it is just that. As we have discussed at Defence questions today, a national security and capability review is taking place. It is very important that we have that review, which is about trying to bring together our capabilities with our investment. Equally, the hon. Lady will recognise that, while that capability review is ongoing, it would be entirely inappropriate for me to pluck out individual capabilities and comment on them.
Amphibious Ships — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Roger James Gale (Conservative, Centre-right): In welcoming my hon. Friend’s assurance that the future of our amphibious capability is under active and positive consideration, may I say, as one who has been privileged to spend a little bit of time on HMS Bulwark, that she is a magnificent fighting ship? She punches well above her weight. She has served this nation very well, and to remove her from service would be an absolute tragedy.
Amphibious Ships — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Mark Lancaster (Conservative, Centre-right): I recognise my hon. Friend’s support, and indeed the support of colleagues from across the House who feel strongly on this matter. We enjoy an amphibious capability; of course, it is not just Albion and Bulwark. Albion is about to step up into the high-readiness role for the next five years and Bulwark will be going into the low-readiness role, but there are also the three Bay class ships and we will be investing in amphibious capability for the Queen Elizabeth class as well.
Amphibious Ships — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Mark Lancaster (Conservative, Centre-right): That is a very fair point. Indeed, at the moment, no advice has been put on Ministers’ desks about the outcome to which the review is leading, but it will be based firmly on military advice.
Former Armed Forces Personnel — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Tobias Martin Ellwood (Conservative, Centre-right): The Ministry of Defence holds personal information on former armed forces personnel for lawful defence and security purposes. Information is held if the individual is receiving an armed forces occupational pension, has made a claim for compensation, or is being provided with welfare assistance. The MOD is determined to ensure that veterans who require help are provided with appropriate support through the Veterans UK helpline and website, the welfare service and the veterans information service.
Former Armed Forces Personnel — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Health
Robert Alexander Stewart (Conservative, Centre-right): Will the Minister assure me that medical records of former personnel are accurately passed to general practitioners? It is a long time ago now, but mine were not, and there was no record of my being badly hurt and spending six months in hospital. My general practitioner was amazed.
Former Armed Forces Personnel — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Tobias Martin Ellwood (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend makes a valid point. It is important that we get these things right. As those who have served in the armed forces depart, we need to make sure that we provide the service that veterans deserve.
Care Home Safety — House of Commons, 2019-06-18
Topic: Health
Emma Dent Coad (Labour, Centre-left): I draw the Minister’s attention to one example of a care home run by a private provider: Ellesmere House, which offers residential care for dementia sufferers. In February 2015, there was a serious safeguarding incident leading to the death of a resident after an incident with another resident, yet its latest CQC report underlines continued failures in management. Is the Minister confident that we have a generation of providers with the skills, training and facilities needed to keep dementia sufferers safe and well cared for?
Care Home Safety — House of Commons, 2019-06-18
Topic: Health
Rosena Chantelle Allin-Khan (Labour, Centre-left): I know from my family’s personal experience that just because care homes have a CQC rating of good does not mean that there are not dangerous and serious issues lurking beneath the surface that impact patient safety and care. Will the Minister outline today what the Government are doing to look into reports from CQC homes that are rated good?
Care Home Safety — House of Commons, 2019-06-18
Topic: Health
Barbara Mary Keeley (Labour, Centre-left): The integrity of CQC ratings was dealt a mortal blow by the uncovering of abuse at Whorlton Hall by BBC "Panorama". Watching the abuse on that programme is made worse by the knowledge that the abuse may have started five years ago. The unpublished inspection report from August 2015 described allegations of assaults on patients, the undocumented use of a seclusion room and the use of rapid tranquilisation not backed by an organisation policy. I do not have any confidence that the review called by the CQC will uncover the truth behind that abuse. Will the Minister agree to set up an inquiry into this matter, so that we can establish whether the care regulator is fit for purpose?
NHS: New Technology — House of Commons, 2019-06-18
Topic: Health
Questions: The Secretary of State will know that in Greater Manchester we spend over £1 million a year on keeping and storing paper-based assessment records made in the early years by health visitors. Will he work with us to eradicate that cost and get the digital licences we need?
Catherine McKinnell (Labour, Centre-left): On new technology and saving lives, I met the Secretary of State last month to discuss making the innovative enzyme replacement therapy Brineura— the only treatment available for Batten disease—available on the NHS urgently. I have heard nothing since that meeting, and the wait is agonising for the families, so what will he do urgently to make this life-saving treatment available to children in England?
NHS Staffing — House of Commons, 2019-06-18
Topic: Health
Ruth Stephanie Nicole George (Labour, Centre-left): My constituents find it very difficult to access their GP, as we have a recruitment shortage in the constituency. The "General Practice Forward View" pledged to boost the GP workforce by 5,000 by 2020. Are the Government on course to meet that target?
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Questions: Will my right hon. Friend confirm the Government’s commitment to NATO and to the collective defence of its members, which has kept the peace for more than 70 years? Will he condemn those who would withdraw from NATO and abandon our allies?
Michael Fallon (Conservative, Centre-right): NATO is the cornerstone of our defence. We are leading the battlegroup in Estonia, we have sent troops to Poland and we have sent RAF Typhoons to Romania. By contrast, the Leader of the Opposition does not support collective defence and Young Labour has just voted to withdraw from NATO.
NHS Staffing — House of Commons, 2019-06-18
Topic: Health
Yvette Cooper (Labour, Centre-left): Pinderfields Hospital in Wakefield has struggled to retain midwives. As a result, the trust has proposed to cut and close the popular midwife-led maternity unit in Pontefract. Local mums are up in arms, as it is completely unfair. We keep seeing this pattern. When the NHS is under pressure from austerity, from shortages or from management issues, it is the services in towns that are hit. What will the Secretary of State do to make sure we have enough midwives across the country so that we can keep Pontefract’s midwife-led unit open and so the NHS can continue to sustain services that are vital to our towns?
Mental Health Services — House of Commons, 2019-06-18
Topic: Health
Paul Daniel Williams (Labour, Centre-left): Somebody is much more likely to need mental health services if they have experienced childhood adversity. The all-party group on the prevention of adverse childhood experiences has looked in detail at the evidence base on policies to prevent this adversity. What is the best thing the group can do to influence the Government’s prevention strategy?
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2017-10-23
Topic: Defense
Questions: Will my right hon. Friend confirm the Government’s commitment to NATO and to the collective defence of its members, which has kept the peace for more than 70 years? Will he condemn those who would withdraw from NATO and abandon our allies?; Will the Secretary of State give us an up-to-date report on the implementation of the armed forces covenant, bearing in mind that it was a Labour Government who introduced it in the first place?; The Government’s intention to come out of the single market and the customs union will affect the complex supply chains in defence procurement. Has the Minister made a full assessment of the implications of Brexit for defence procurement, taking into account the complex supply chains?
Harriett Mary Morison Baldwin (Conservative, Centre-right): I assure the hon. Lady that an extensive programme of work is under way not only in the Ministry of Defence, but with our colleagues in the Department for Exiting the European Union. We are very conscious of the importance of those supply chains.