argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Finance (No. 2) Bill — House of Commons, 2015-03-25
Topic: Other
Lindsay Harvey Hoyle (Labour, Centre-left): It was a business motion that was agreed yesterday, but not the terminology, I presume. Mr Speaker is not in the Chair so I do not know when he was told. I was told about five minutes ago when I came into the Chair. [Interruption.] No, that is correct. There is a business motion. [Interruption.] Mr Doughty, we are trying to deal with this. We have many other points of order on that matter.
Finance (No. 2) Bill — House of Commons, 2015-03-25
Topic: Other
Barbara Mary Keeley (Labour, Centre-left): On a point of order, Mr Deputy Speaker. Is it in order for a member of a Select Committee who has been involved in a serious leak and a possible breach of privilege in this House then to raise that, as happened today at Prime Minister’s questions in a question from the hon. Member for Bristol North West (Charlotte Leslie), thus exacerbating the situation the Committee has found itself in? I would be grateful for your advice.
Finance (No. 2) Bill — House of Commons, 2015-03-25
Topic: Other
Lindsay Harvey Hoyle (Labour, Centre-left): I am sure that you are aware that Mr Speaker has sent a letter to the Chair of the Select Committee. I can also inform you that it is not a matter for the Chair; it is a matter for the Committee. In the new Parliament, there will also be a new Committee that can look into it. Unfortunately, as I say, it is not a matter for the Chair.
Housing development on Midmar Paddock, Edinburgh — House of Commons, 2015-03-25
Topic: Housing
Ian Murray (Labour, Centre-left): I wish to present a petition on behalf of my constituents to prevent housing development on Midmar Paddock in Edinburgh The petitioners declare that Midmar Paddock in Edinburgh is used by hundreds of people every week for open-air exercise with children, families and dogs, as a green lung in the city; further that it is green-belt land, a special landscape area, designated open space and a local nature reserve, where planning developments have been resisted for decades; further that it is under imminent threat following its sale with development potential for housing development, and a planning application is expected shortly; and further that a local petition on this matter was signed by 330 individuals in the local area, supported by the wonderful Friends of the Hermitage of Braid, and the Morningside community council, especially Mr Goff Cantley The Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges the Secretary of State for Scotland to encourage the Scottish Government and the City of Edinburgh council to intervene to stop housing development on Midmar Paddock Following is the full text of the petition: [The Petition of residents of the UK, Declares that Midmar Paddock in Edinburgh is used by hundreds of people every week for open air exercise with children and dogs; further that it is green belt land, a special landscape area, designated open space and a local nature conservation site; further that it is under imminent threat of housing development and a planning application is expected shortly; and further that a local Petition on this matter was signed by 330 individuals. The Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges the Secretary of State for Scotland to encourage the Scottish Government to intervene to stop housing development on Midmar Paddock. And the Petitioners remain, etc.] [P001487]
Development on Greenbelt Land in Edinburgh — House of Commons, 2015-03-25
Topic: Housing
Ian Murray (Labour, Centre-left): I wish to present a petition on development on green-belt land in Edinburgh The petition states: The Petition of residents of the UK, Declares that the Local Development Plan 2015–2020 has proposed a number of sites on the south side of Edinburgh for development; further that local residents want the sites at Broomhills, Old Station Road, Burdiehouse, The Drum, Ellen’s Glen and Moredun to be exempt from the new plan; further that local residents, community groups and the local community councils— especially the Gilmerton Inch community council and the Liberton and District community council— are concerned by the likely impact on local amenities if these plans are approved; further that the Petitioners call for the plan to be scrapped and a proper process to be put in place to determine the future development of the city which works in conjunction with local communities and not against them; and further that a local petition on this matter was signed by 130 individuals It was also signed by the Liberton and District community council and the Gilmerton Inch community council The Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges the Secretary of State for Scotland to encourage the Scottish Government to remove the sites on the south side of Edinburgh (Broomhills, Old Station Road, Burdiehouse, The Drum, Ellen’s Glen and Moredun) from the Local Development Plan’s proposals for development and to put a process in place to determine future development of Edinburgh which works in conjunction with local communities And the Petitioners remain, etc [P001488]
Social Care and Military Compensation — House of Commons, 2015-03-25
Topic: Other
Gordon Marsden (Labour, Centre-left): I do not wish to intrude on the Minister’s time, and I agree that the process is complex. I recall Churchill’s observation that it was not the end or even the beginning of the end, but it might be the end of the beginning. Will the Minister tell us how far down the line we might be expected to be at this point, and what stage the Government think has been reached?
Voter Registration — House of Commons, 2015-07-01
Topic: Mixed Topics
Wayne David (Labour, Centre-left): Two weeks ago, the Electoral Commission published a report on the transition to full individual electoral registration. It expressed concern about the numbers that could fall off the electoral register if the Government brought forward the date of full IER to December 2015. Will the Government follow the advice of the Electoral Commission?
Electoral Register — House of Commons, 2015-07-01
Topic: Housing
Grahame Mark Morris (Labour, Centre-left): I thank the Minister for that response, but the number of eligible voters who are missing from registers is a concern. I draw his attention to two specific groups: private rented tenants and the rising 18s. In my constituency, the rising 18s are down 50%. What action is he taking to try to address that issue?
Equal Pay and the Gender Pay Gap — House of Commons, 2015-07-01
Topic: Civil Rights
Gloria De Piero (Labour, Centre-left): I will come to the way in which full-time and part-time gender pay gaps are measured. I believe there is a flaw in the measurement. An hour at work is an hour at work, no matter whether someone is part-time or full-time. I for one find it peculiar that the Office for National Statistics makes that distinction. Is it because most women are in part-time work? I fear that that is exactly why Friends Life, the big insurance company, was one of the first big companies to publish its pay gap. It said that "what gets measured, gets managed" and that "what gets publicly reported, gets managed better" In other words, transparency can lead to real and lasting change. We believe it is time to take that principle and apply it to the whole country The purpose of the motion is to propose that the independent Equality and Human Rights Commission should be tasked with analysing the information and producing a report to the Government and Parliament each year. It will monitor progress and make recommendations for action. It will act as an equal pay watchdog. An annual equal pay check would be a tool used to measure progress towards the goal of eliminating the gender pay gap in this generation By analysing the information, the EHRC could compare progress in different sectors, highlight areas where the gap is unusually high or widening, and identify companies, professions or industries where the gender pay gap is a thing of the past. We recommend that the EHRC draws on the expertise of the statisticians at the Low Pay Commission, because the disproportionate number of women in low-paid jobs is a major factor in the pay gap. Crucially, the EHRC should make recommendations for action, based on its analysis. It could do that by highlighting the best practice it finds in industries and individual companies, because there is not just one reason for the gender pay gap Discrimination still happens. I have spoken to women who are senior executives in investment banks and women working as council care assistants who have suffered because of it. Their stories are real and human.
Equal Pay and the Gender Pay Gap — House of Commons, 2015-07-01
Topic: Civil Rights
Gloria De Piero (Labour, Centre-left): I am not an expert on North Lanarkshire Council, but I would say, in relation to Scotland, that the pay gap has increased while the Scottish National party has been in government. That is a worry and it goes against the trend One woman who works in childcare won her equal pay claim after years of being paid less than men working in jobs that required fewer skills. She told me: "I’d got a fair amount of money through the payout, but all of those years I struggled to pay my bills and the debt I was in as a low-waged woman worker…all those years I was in debt to credit card companies, even though I had been to college for two years. I’d got qualifications; it was a vocation not a job. And I think what would my life have been like if I’d been paid a fair wage?" Winning an equal pay claim has never been easy. Equal pay claims make up only a fraction of employment tribunal claims. The Government have made the task even harder with the introduction of tribunal fees, which have led to a 69% fall in equal pay claims. Fewer women are accessing justice to challenge pay discrimination.
Equal Pay and the Gender Pay Gap — House of Commons, 2015-07-01
Topic: Civil Rights
Gloria De Piero (Labour, Centre-left): My hon. Friend makes an excellent point. Indeed, our manifesto stated that the whole system needs reform, so that nobody is priced out of seeking justice at work Pay transparency has never only been about pay discrimination. The causes of the gender pay gap across business and across Britain are far more complex. Why is most low-paid work today done by women? Women do 59% of all minimum wage jobs: a quarter of working women earning less than the living wage, compared with a sixth of men. Why are only 9.6% of executive directors on FTSE boards women?
Equal Pay and the Gender Pay Gap — House of Commons, 2015-07-01
Topic: Civil Rights
Gloria De Piero (Labour, Centre-left): I always welcome and applaud senior women in our politics. I do not want to be too churlish, but I will put on record that the Labour Benches still have more women MPs, despite the fact that we left office, than all the other parties put together By monitoring and assessing the evidence, the annual equal pay check will help us to determine whether the continued existence of the pay gap is driven mainly by a lack of women in top jobs, and enable us to identify the industries in which women are paid less because they are mainly employed in flexible or part-time work.
Equal Pay and the Gender Pay Gap — House of Commons, 2015-07-01
Topic: Civil Rights
Gloria De Piero (Labour, Centre-left): I am delighted that we have more women on boards, but we have so much further to go. We want women to take decisions and to be in executive roles on boards. I am afraid progress on that is really not good enough.
Equal Pay and the Gender Pay Gap — House of Commons, 2015-07-01
Topic: Civil Rights
Diana Ruth Johnson (Labour, Centre-left): While we are talking about the kind of industries that do not have women at the top, will my hon. Friend join me in congratulating the first woman Bishop of Hull, who will be ordained in York Minster on Friday? Alongside her will be our first female chief constable of Humberside police. Indeed, I will be there too, as the first women ever to represent a constituency in Hull. This is about increasing young women’s chances of having those types of careers, as well as others.
Equal Pay and the Gender Pay Gap — House of Commons, 2015-07-01
Topic: Civil Rights
Gloria De Piero (Labour, Centre-left): That has certainly worked for non-executive positions on boards. My experience, and the experience of friends and colleagues, is that when in work, women want to progress, take decisions and move up the ladder to executive roles. It is therefore important for us as a country to ask why more women are not in senior positions, because it is not credible that there are simply not enough talented women who could rise to the top of their professions. I think it is fair to say that something else is going on. Nobody wants their daughters, wives or girlfriends to miss out on those kinds of opportunities. This is not just a women’s issue; it is an issue for Britons.
Equal Pay and the Gender Pay Gap — House of Commons, 2015-07-01
Topic: Other
Barry Strachan Gardiner (Labour, Centre-left): My hon. Friend is being most generous in giving way. Does she share my disappointment that, rather uniquely, the debate has twice as many women MPs in the Chamber, listening to her excellent remarks, as men? There are only half as many men in the Chamber.
Equal Pay and the Gender Pay Gap — House of Commons, 2015-07-01
Topic: Civil Rights
Gloria De Piero (Labour, Centre-left): The Labour Government did some fantastic work on equal pay. My hon. Friend will know that we Labour Members never stop fighting for progress and never stop challenging. That is why today is part of the overall journey; we must monitor what happens to make sure that we do not go backwards.
Equal Pay and the Gender Pay Gap — House of Commons, 2015-07-01
Topic: Civil Rights
Gloria De Piero (Labour, Centre-left): Gosh—let me explain what happened. Just before we left office, we introduced—led by my right hon. and learned Friend the Member for Camberwell and Peckham (Ms Harman), the acting leader of the Labour party—the Equality Act 2010. We passed the Act and section 78 merely needed to be implemented, but the coalition parties decided to ditch that section. [Interruption.] Yes, that is what happened, so I am grateful to the hon. and learned Gentleman for enabling me to remind the House of what happened It is extraordinary that even in professions dominated by women—hairdressing, catering, cleaning—the pay gap still exists, while women in skilled trades, including plumbers and mechanics, suffer the biggest pay gap of all. They are paid close to 30% less than their male colleagues. That is an astonishing statistic The information that companies will start publishing next year will provide the most comprehensive account of the gender pay gap in this country. It can tell us where progress needs to be made—sector by sector, industry by industry—but only if a central independent watchdog is tasked with ensuring that that happens Today, girls are outperforming boys at school and university, but even at ages 18 to 21, women are paid less on average than young men of their age. When women hit their 20s, they are already 5p behind male colleagues. This gap continues to widen throughout women’s working lives, peaking when women reach their 50s when they can expect to earn just 73p for every male pound.
Equal Pay and the Gender Pay Gap — House of Commons, 2015-07-01
Topic: Civil Rights
Gloria De Piero (Labour, Centre-left): When it comes to parental leave, I welcome any progress. We need to ensure that more dads take paternity leave. That is why at the last election, the Labour party said that we would double the number and increase the funding. Sadly, we are not able to implement what we wanted Let me provide a few more figures before I close my speech. If a woman is working in sales or the care industry, the pay gap means losing more than £100,000 over the course of a working life. A woman working in finance or law will stand to lose over £200,000. We do not fight against this injustice for women alone, because no man wants his wife, daughter, sister or mother to be earning less simply because they are a woman. Women should not have to wait another 45 years—or another 70 years, as the UN has estimated—for equal pay in Britain. I hope that today’s motion will be viewed as uncontroversial in many ways, and that the Government will be happy to vote with us I understand that the plan is to consult over the summer, so this is about setting the ambition high and securing an annual equal pay check that will use the information soon to be published to drive forward progress and end this injustice once and for all. Labour Members have a long and proud history of campaigning for equal pay. This motion represents the next step on that journey. I commend it to the House.
Equal Pay and the Gender Pay Gap — House of Commons, 2015-07-01
Topic: Civil Rights
Emily Thornberry (Labour, Centre-left): The Secretary of State referred to alternative ways of dealing with the situation. When she conducts her review, will she take another look at the short-form questionnaire, which enables a woman who believes that she has been discriminated against to ask her employer for certain facts and figures before even going to a tribunal and taking legal action?
Equal Pay and the Gender Pay Gap — House of Commons, 2015-07-01
Topic: Other
Lindsay Harvey Hoyle (Labour, Centre-left): Order. I want to enable all Members to speak. May I say to new Members that if they make short interventions, every speaker will have between eight and nine minutes. If they can stick to that, everyone will be well served.
Equal Pay and the Gender Pay Gap — House of Commons, 2015-07-01
Topic: Civil Rights
Louise Margaret Haigh (Labour, Centre-left): Does the right hon. Lady agree that in order to improve the number of women on boards we must do much more to tackle the pipeline and encourage businesses to promote women internally? From my own experience working in the City of London, senior women were often brought into the organisation but very few women were promoted internally.
Equal Pay and the Gender Pay Gap — House of Commons, 2015-07-01
Topic: Civil Rights
Carolyn Harris (Labour, Centre-left): Since the Government introduced fees for tribunals, the number of unequal pay cases has fallen by 68%. If the Government are committed to tackling the gender pay gap, why are they making it much harder for women to challenge pay discrimination?
Equal Pay and the Gender Pay Gap — House of Commons, 2015-07-01
Topic: Civil Rights
Sarah Deborah Champion (Labour, Centre-left): I completely agree. This is about empowerment, enabling all children to reach their potential both at a young age and as they grow up, and the direct impact that being treated with disrespect has on their potential to reach their full financial and economic growth, which directly affects their immediate family I am not advocating teaching little children about sex, but I am saying that every child at key stage 1 should understand about valuing themselves and others. They should understand their rights to respect and privacy, and understand what to do if those rights are violated. We cannot protect children 24/7 from abusers, but we can teach children to protect themselves Violence against girls and women is not a problem that can be fixed overnight, but perpetrators do not reach adulthood and decide one day that they are going to abuse a girl. It is not an on/off switch where one day they are fine and the next day they are a perpetrator of domestic violence or child abuse. It is a slow erosion of boundaries that happens over years. Instead of waiting to deal with the crime, we need to empower our young people with positive examples of relationships, using their years in education for positive interventions in an attempt to prevent violence occurring. Building on that, I intend to work with a number of the leading charities to try to engage the country and decision makers in challenging the stereotypes that are repressing women.
Equal Pay and the Gender Pay Gap — House of Commons, 2015-07-01
Topic: Civil Rights
Seema Malhotra-Saluja (Labour, Centre-left): I congratulate the hon. Member for Bury St Edmunds (Jo Churchill) and my hon. Friend the Member for Bermondsey and Old Southwark (Neil Coyle) on two outstanding maiden speeches. I believe they will do a tremendous job in this Parliament in standing up for their constituents I welcome the debate and the opportunity to speak, and I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Ashfield (Gloria De Piero) on calling it. It is an incredibly important issue. As we have heard from many hon. Members, it is an issue for men as much as women. It is an issue for our nation as much as it is for our economic benefit and local communities. As well as being an end in itself, the debate is important in sending a message that women’s labour is equal to men’s I was pleased to hear the Minister’s commitment and her words about the importance of transparency. However, it is a shame that it has taken the Government so long to recognise that transparency is a key step on the pathway to action. As has been mentioned, the previous Labour Government introduced rules on pay transparency in section 78 of the Equality Act 2010. It was only earlier this year, when Labour tabled an amendment to the Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Act 2015, that the Government gave in, having voted down a proposal as recently as December 2014. That happened even after we had launched a campaign to implement pay transparency that was supported by Grazia. I was incredibly proud to be part of that I welcome the Government consultation that will be conducted over the summer. I will certainly contribute my thoughts to it.
Equal Pay and the Gender Pay Gap — House of Commons, 2015-07-01
Topic: Civil Rights
Seema Malhotra-Saluja (Labour, Centre-left): My hon. Friend makes a valid point. Labour’s commitment to pay transparency and equality, and to gender equality, has been second to none in the history of Parliament It is 45 years since we passed the Equal Pay Act 1970, but in my constituency there is still a 13.3% pay gap. Women earn 87p for every pound that a man earns. That will continue to come as a shock to the men and women in my constituency—the engineers, the shop workers, the public sector workers, the small business employees and carers—who are earning a wage. They will consider themselves to be treated equally until they realise that there is actually pay inequality A number of incredibly important issues have been raised in this debate, particularly on the perception of the causes of pay inequality, whether relating to careers advice, role models, social attitudes or care responsibilities that can impact on women’s ability to hold down a full-time job. My hon. Friend the Member for Rotherham (Sarah Champion) raised important points about the impact that violence against women and girls can have on employment and on self-esteem. The ability to hold down a stable life has an impact on their experience in the workplace. I recognise and celebrate the work of the Women’s Business Council, which does a lot to tackle inequality in business I want to raise one issue in particular that I believe contributes to pay inequality: the perception of jobs in gender stereotypes. I want to ask where the agency of change is, because I do not want the debate to turn into a discussion about what women need to do differently. The debate needs to be about what business and society does and thinks, and how they need to change. Too often, pay has been set based on perceptions of whether something is a "woman’s job". In a "man’s job" the perception will be that a woman might do it less well. In this Parliament, we have to break such perceptions. We need to say that there should be no glass ceilings and no no-go areas for women in any sector of employment.
Equal Pay and the Gender Pay Gap — House of Commons, 2015-07-01
Topic: Other
Dawn Petula Butler (Labour, Centre-left): My hon. Friend is making a compelling case for why Members on all sides of the House should support the motion. The Secretary of State said that she supports the motion in principle. Should we just urge Government Members to support us?