argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Grenfell Tower and Building Safety — House of Commons, 2017-09-05
Topic: Social Welfare
Emma Dent Coad (Labour, Centre-left): I acknowledge the work of the Government to date over the summer, when I was also working on this, of course. However, I have two issues of outstanding concern. It is clear that the rehousing of Grenfell survivors and evacuees has fallen disgracefully behind schedule, and we know that some of the homes offered to them within three weeks were completely unsuitable. The school year began today and students will shortly be beginning university from inadequate accommodation in hotels, with no space to study. Their grades will suffer, as will those of the young man who was taking his GCSEs on the morning of the fire, who arrived at school in his underwear and was given clothes to wear. He did not have the fabulous good fortune of the efforts of the young woman the Secretary of State spoke about; he has had no consideration, and has lost his place at school, which I find disgraceful As well as hearing the Secretary of State’s response on that, I would like him to address the issue of the provision of mental health services. The so far unsubstantiated press story we have heard today about the potential number of attempted suicides is very unsettling for a community still under huge stress. While the NHS foundation trust rebuttal today stated that nearly 4,000 people have been contacted, there are still many survivors and their families who feel forgotten and neglected, and who are not getting help. What will the Secretary of State do to ensure that trust is restored among these very vulnerable people and they get the help they need?
Korean Peninsula — House of Commons, 2017-09-05
Topic: International Affairs
Barry John Sheerman (Labour, Centre-left): I urge the Foreign Secretary to carry on that quiet diplomacy. This must be one of the most frightening times in world history, as we really could be in a situation where a country such as North Korea would launch a missile. I want quiet diplomacy, but may I get the message across to the Foreign Secretary that that means working assiduously with all our allies? Yes, we must have serious conversations with the United States—that is unavoidable —but we must also work with all our friends and allies in Europe, particularly the Germans, the French and others, and particularly with NATO. We have heard very little about NATO in the recent days and weeks.
Korean Peninsula — House of Commons, 2017-09-05
Topic: International Affairs
Stephen John Doughty (Labour, Centre-left): It is clear not only that North Korea has developed much of its missile and nuclear capacity domestically, but that the country has received both physical and intellectual external assistance for its missile and nuclear programmes. Is the Foreign Secretary convinced that we have done all we can to intercept such help and to prevent North Korea from receiving further assistance?
Korean Peninsula — House of Commons, 2017-09-05
Topic: International Affairs
Madeleine Moon (Labour, Centre-left): The Foreign Secretary may be aware that I am due to visit South Korea in the near future, with NATO allies. Who does he see as having the major responsibility for dealing with the crisis—is it America, the United Nations, or alliances from around the world? Who will spearhead the diplomatic effort, and will he give us a clear idea of where we sit in that?
Korean Peninsula — House of Commons, 2017-09-05
Topic: International Affairs
Nicklaus Thomas-Symonds (Labour, Centre-left): In the current situation, China has enormous power in the form of the 500,000 tonnes of crude oil that it exports to North Korea every year. What further steps can the Foreign Secretary take to encourage China to exercise that enormous power?
Korean Peninsula — House of Commons, 2017-09-05
Topic: International Affairs
Anthony Joseph Lloyd (Labour, Centre-left): The regime in Pyongyang is most certainly unpalatable, but it is important to remember that it may not be totally irrational. The Foreign Secretary’s alignment of Beijing’s policy with our own approach to the matter is commendable; is it worth considering what kind of security guarantees can be offered to North Korea? Trying to get a diplomatic solution means we have to allow for the possibility that there are some people in North Korea who take a rational view of their own future.
Korean Peninsula — House of Commons, 2017-09-05
Topic: International Affairs
Paul Phillip Flynn (Labour, Centre-left): The most likely start of a nuclear war will come by accident, by technical failure or by human error. The danger of that is greatly increased as world tension multiplies. Is it not true that, while there is no equivalence in this and we should pay credit to China for keeping the lid on paranoid regimes in North Korea for 60 years, the new element has been an American President who has managed to inflame every frozen conflict that he has addressed? Should it not be right that we take a British diplomatic, experienced view of this, with cooler heads, rather than follow the example of the apprentice President?
Korean Peninsula — House of Commons, 2017-09-05
Topic: International Affairs
Mary Elizabeth Twist (Labour, Centre-left): Sanctions imposed by the UN on North Korea, especially those of the past year, are the strongest yet. Can the Secretary of State tell us what steps the Government are taking to ensure that all those sanctions are fully implemented and, crucially, enforced by all UN member states?
Korean Peninsula — House of Commons, 2017-09-05
Topic: International Affairs
Alexander David Sobel (Labour, Centre-left): I do agree that this crisis has been created by the missile tests and thermonuclear test last week by the North Korean regime, which clearly is not acting like a rational nation state. I thank the Foreign Secretary for his approach and for using the UN Security Council to put pressure on China and to restart the six-nations talks. However, on Sunday, the President of the United States made a public statement on Twitter, as is his wont, saying: "South Korea is finding, as I have told them, that their talk of appeasement with North Korea will not work, they only understand one thing!" Is that our approach? Are we saying that the approach of regional nations such as South Korea amounts to appeasement? The "one thing" he mentions is clearly military action. Are we pressing all the other options on the United States?
Exiting the EU: Devolved Administrations — House of Commons, 2017-09-05
Topic: International Affairs
Rosalie Winterton (Labour, Centre-left): The hon. Gentleman has asked for leave to propose a debate on a specific and important matter that should have urgent consideration, namely the UK exiting the EU and the role of devolved Administrations. I have listened carefully to his application, but I am not persuaded that this is a matter properly to be discussed under Standing Order No. 24. The Standing Order states that I should not give the reasons for my decision to the House, but perhaps I may give a hint that the Standing Order requires me to have regard to the probability of the matter being brought before the House in time by other means. I will leave it at that
Telecommunications Infrastructure (Relief from Non-Domestic Rates) Bill — House of Commons, 2017-09-05
Topic: Macroeconomics
Rosalie Winterton (Labour, Centre-left): With this it will be convenient to discuss the following: Clauses 2 to 4 stand part That the schedule be the schedule to the Bill Clauses 5 and 6 stand part New clause 1—Report on operation of the relief— "(1) The Secretary of State shall, by 30 September 2018, lay a report before Parliament containing an assessment of the operation of the relief in the 2017-18 financial year (2) The report shall include an account of— (a) the impact upon the level of local authority income raised through non-domestic rating, (b) the level of investment likely to have been stimulated by the proposed relief, and the scope for extending the relief to other forms of investment, (c) whether the duration of the relief is appropriate, (d) the views of those subject to charge of non-domestic rates on the relief, and (e) the efficacy of the existing mechanism for distribution of relief."
Telecommunications Infrastructure (Relief from Non-Domestic Rates) Bill — House of Commons, 2017-09-05
Topic: Government Operations
James McMahon (Labour, Centre-left): We have just had a run-through of what the Bill contains, and by and large we welcome it. It is one of the remnants of the Local Government Finance Bill, which fell when the general election was called, and which contained things that industry and local government leaders wanted to see introduced. This could well be the first of several proposals, and I would welcome a conversation about that.
Incontinence — House of Commons, 2017-09-05
Topic: Education
David Drew (Labour, Centre-left): My hon. Friend is making a compelling case. She will be aware of ERIC—Education and Resources for Improving Childhood Continence—which has campaigned for many years for better availability of continence pads. These are still charged for at very high rates. If every school were to provide continence pads, a lot of children would have a much better experience at school.
Incontinence — House of Commons, 2017-09-05
Topic: Education
David Drew (Labour, Centre-left): The Minister will have heard my earlier intervention. Will he and his colleagues in the Department for Education commit to write to each school to make sure that they have an incontinence strategy? In particular—it is just a simple thing—they should provide incontinence pads for children who suffer from this terrible condition.
Leaving the EU: Cabotage — House of Commons, 2017-03-30
Topic: Foreign Trade
Richard Haines Burden (Labour, Centre-left): The Prime Minister told the House yesterday that she will "deliver certainty" to UK businesses about their position post-Brexit, but without agreement on the principles behind cabotage, trucking companies are already warning that new customer checks will gridlock roads leading to the channel ports. UK-based airlines are already warning that they may need to relocate their bases across the channel if the UK falls out of the common aviation area. Just how and when are Ministers going to deliver the certainty that those companies need now, rather than a ministerial aspiration that everything is going to be all right on the night?
Northern Powerhouse Rail — House of Commons, 2017-03-30
Topic: Transportation
Judith Mary Cummins (Labour, Centre-left): I am sure the Minister will be aware that Bradford has launched the "Next Stop Bradford" campaign to secure a High Speed 3 station in our city centre. Will the Minister join me in supporting a Northern Powerhouse Rail station in Bradford city centre and thereby support the huge £1.3 billion boost to the northern powerhouse economy that the new station promises?
Northern Powerhouse Rail — House of Commons, 2017-03-30
Topic: Transportation
Louise Joyce Ellman (Labour, Centre-left): Transport for the North has great potential to transform the northern economies, but what powers will it actually have? When will it become a statutory body, and will it have the same powers as Transport for London?
Switch Island, Sefton — House of Commons, 2017-03-30
Topic: Transportation
Questions: If he will make an assessment of the adequacy of road safety at the Switch Island junction in Sefton; and if he will make a statement.
William Roffen Esterson (Labour, Centre-left): I had two letters from the Minister of State last week, one describing work on the M25 and the other about Switch Island, which he describes. We all know that the Government have a Surrey-first approach to spending money, but my constituents want to know about Switch Island. It has a very serious safety problem. There are accidents nearly every week, and there was one just two days ago. Will he change the priority of this scheme? I was told it would happen next year, but it needs to happen much sooner than that. Safety must come first.
Rail Ticketing — House of Commons, 2017-03-30
Topic: Transportation
Christopher John Bryant (Labour, Centre-left): Will the Government also simplify the process of compensation for customers when a train is cancelled? The school run train in the Rhondda is often cancelled, as for that matter are First Great Western trains from London to Cardiff. There is no automatic compensation on either of those lines, which other providers give. Why can we not have automatic compensation when a train is cancelled?
Private Parking — House of Commons, 2017-03-30
Topic: Transportation
Questions: What discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on the adequacy of the Government’s policy on private parking; and if he will make a statement.
Nicholas Desmond John Smith (Labour, Centre-left): Motorists must be able to challenge unfair parking fines. When my constituents were punished by Excel Parking’s poor signage in Ebbw Vale town centre, many were forced to come to me to have any hope of a refund. Have the Government assessed how effective the appeals service POPLA—Parking on Private Land Appeals—has been in protecting motorists? Does the service live up to its name?
Private Parking — House of Commons, 2017-03-30
Topic: Transportation
Questions: What discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on the adequacy of the Government’s policy on private parking; and if he will make a statement.
Graham Peter Jones (Labour, Centre-left): A constituent of mine, Lisa Smith, was given a ticket for parking on the line. Another constituent of mine, Catherine Cheeseman, saw a £60 fine very quickly escalate to a £180 fine, with threats of court action, and a disabled constituent of mine whose blue badge was out of date by a week was given a fine. When are the Government going to bring forward legislation to deal with rogue private parking companies and those who rip off British motorists?
Private Parking — House of Commons, 2017-03-30
Topic: Transportation
Questions: What discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on the adequacy of the Government’s policy on private parking; and if he will make a statement.
Daniel Stephen Zeichner (Labour, Centre-left): We have heard about the Westminster Hall debate last week and we have heard complaints from Members across the country about the practices of cowboy parking operators. Extraordinarily, in that debate the hon. Member for North East Somerset (Mr Rees-Mogg) revealed hitherto undiscovered socialist tendencies by demanding that the Government act and introduce regulation. These cowboy operators need DVLA data to fleece their victims. How many operators have been struck off for poor practice? After years of dithering on this, when are the Government going to step in to protect innocent motorists?
Rail Network: Investment — House of Commons, 2017-03-30
Topic: Transportation
Rachael Helen Maskell (Labour, Centre-left): I thank the Minister for his answer, but the overhead line equipment on the east coast main line route is in urgent need of renewal, having been installed in the 1970s and ’80s. We already know that there is six-times higher spend in the south than in the north on rail and transport infrastructure, but we also seem to have an east-west divide in rail: the east coast route has received £3 billion less than that of the west. Will the Government bring forward their funding to upgrade the east coast main line infrastructure, since the passenger performance measure is now at 25.1% because of overhead line failure? In layman’s terms, my constituents’ journeys are being delayed and seriously diverted.
Rail Network: Investment — House of Commons, 2017-03-30
Topic: Transportation
Matthew Thomas Pennycook (Labour, Centre-left): Despite all the investment in maintenance, passengers in south-east London who use Southeastern services desperately need investment in rolling stock to deal with the serious overcrowding on the line. Will the Minister tell the House whether he is looking favourably on the revised bid that Southeastern has put forward?
National Road Safety Targets — House of Commons, 2017-03-30
Topic: Transportation
Catherine Malloy Hollern (Labour, Centre-left): Is the Minister aware that between September 2015 and September 2016 there was a 2% increase in deaths on roads, and a 6% increase in casualties? The rate of casualties in my constituency of Blackburn is 49% higher than the national average and, shockingly, child casualties are 102% higher than the national average rate. Between 2010 and 2015, the number of dedicated road traffic police officers in England and Wales, outside the Met, has fallen by over a quarter from 5,338 to 3,901. Does the Minister see a direct link between reduced capacity to enforce road laws and the annual increases in road deaths and serious casualties?
National Road Safety Targets — House of Commons, 2017-03-30
Topic: Transportation
Questions: Cyclists in Stroud—and for that matter in Sefton—are crying out for more road safety measures to ensure they can go around roundabouts and across junctions in safety. Will the Minister take that into account in national transport planning?
Pat Glass (Labour, Centre-left): National road safety targets were introduced by the Thatcher Government in 1980 at a time when deaths and serious injuries on our roads were at horrendous levels. The numbers fell consistently until 2011, when the coalition Government abolished targets almost at the same time as they abolished the grant for speed cameras. Surprisingly, the numbers have started to increase. I accept that we are nowhere near the levels of 1980, but if it is your loved one or your child, that is matterless. The last time the Minister was asked about this he said that he was open to any useful ideas on how to turn the trend, so is it not time to accept that road safety targets decrease the numbers of deaths and injuries on our roads? They worked, and at the moment nothing the Government seem to be doing is reversing that trend.
Heathrow: Noise Monitoring — House of Commons, 2017-03-30
Topic: Transportation
Ruth Margaret Cadbury (Labour, Centre-left): Thousands of my constituents will live under an extremely loud noise environment if and when runway 3 goes ahead, but they do not at present, and I welcome the formation of the new community campaign group Brentford and Hounslow Stop Heathrow Expansion. Will the Government insist that if runway 3 goes ahead, Heathrow must match Gatwick’s offer to pay all council tax payers within the 57 dBA contour £1,000 per annum in compensation?
Road Collision Investigation Unit — House of Commons, 2017-03-30
Topic: Transportation
Barry John Sheerman (Labour, Centre-left): The Minister knows of the interest that I take in this matter, as chair of the Parliamentary Advisory Council on Transport Safety and the international council for road safety research. There is no doubt that we need an investigation unit to deal with sea, air and rail transport. All the transport safety interests across the board are in favour of the establishment of such a unit. We do not think that it would be costly, and it would be effective. Will the Minister think again?
Road Collision Investigation Unit — House of Commons, 2017-03-30
Topic: Transportation
Daniel Stephen Zeichner (Labour, Centre-left): Collisions have a range of causes, but one of them is undoubtedly the poor condition of our local roads. The Minister will be aware of the ALARM—annual local authority road maintenance—survey published this week showing that one in six local roads will not be fit for purpose in five years’ time, and that the number of potholes filled per authority fell by 19% last year. I anticipate that he will tell me how just much money is being poured into those potholes, but does he accept that short-term fixes are no substitute for proper resurfacing, which for most roads currently happens just once every 55 years?
North Wales-England Transport Links — House of Commons, 2017-03-30
Topic: Transportation
David George Hanson (Labour, Centre-left): I am grateful for that answer, and the Minister knows that I support all of those initiatives, but will he consider the letter sent to him by Conservative and Labour Members of Parliament on behalf of the Mersey Dee Alliance and Cheshire East council asking him to look at the developments of High Speed 2 and the hub at Crewe? Building on that progress will help connectivity on behalf of all of us in the region.
North Wales-England Transport Links — House of Commons, 2017-03-30
Topic: Transportation
John Derek Twigg (Labour, Centre-left): The Secretary of State rightly mentioned the Halton curve, for which I have campaigned for many years. It opens up all sorts of possibilities, not least in respect of our connectivity with north Wales. Will he look at the importance of reopening Ditton station in Halton and, when the new city region mayor is elected, talk to them about how that can be brought about much more quickly?
East Midlands Rail Franchise — House of Commons, 2017-03-30
Topic: Transportation
Clive James Charles Betts (Labour, Centre-left): May I press the Minister again on that point? When the franchise is let, the HSTs are going to be phased out, having reached the end of their very long lives, and will need to be replaced. Will they be replaced with hybrid trains that will not have to be changed again when the midland main line is eventually electrified?
Bus Passenger Satisfaction — House of Commons, 2017-03-30
Topic: Transportation
Elizabeth Anne McInnes (Labour, Centre-left): I thank the Minister for that answer, but the Manchester Evening News recently ran its own survey of Greater Manchester residents, and in response to being asked which part of the transport network people most wanted to see improved, more than one in five identified poor bus services. Their complaints covered a whole range of issues including pricing, difficulty in making long journeys, the lack of night buses and general unreliability. What reassurance can the Minister give to Greater Manchester bus users that their complaints are being heard?
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2017-03-30
Topic: Transportation
Andrew Joseph McDonald (Labour, Centre-left): Three years ago the Law Commission recommended wholesale reform of taxi and private hire services, but the Government have not responded. Uber proliferates, but it pays no VAT and the country loses a fortune in avoided corporation tax. The former London Mayor was sat on when he tried to bring Uber to heel, despite the denials of his Bullingdon club friends. A No. 10 adviser, lo and behold, now runs Uber. Is it not time that we saw some urgent action from the Secretary of State on the taxi and private hire industry and, while he is at it, on the way in which his party runs its chumocracy?
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2017-03-30
Topic: Transportation
Andrew Joseph McDonald (Labour, Centre-left): The Uber scandal is not the only issue of concern right at the heart of this Tory Government, given their perpetual revolving-door employment strategy. While we await a formal response on how a senior Department for Transport civil servant awarded a rail franchise while part-owning the consultancy advising the successful bidder, yesterday it was announced that HS2 had dropped the £170 million engineering contract with CH2M. The chief executive officer of HS2, now a full-time appointment, came from CH2M and, more than that, HS2’s former chief of staff worked on the engineering company’s bid for the project. Now the director general of HS2 has resigned this very morning. I do not agree with the TaxPayers Alliance when it says that it does not pass "the smell test," because in fact it stinks to high heaven. Will the Secretary of State order an immediate independent inquiry into these goings on? His silence on the issue speaks volumes.