argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Department for Education — House of Commons, 2019-07-01
Topic: Education
Nicolas John Gibb (Conservative, Centre-right): I am aware of the pressures that schools are under, and I am very happy to come to Durham. I went to university there and would be happy to make a nostalgic trip back. I meet two or three times a week with groups of headteachers brought here by Government Members as well as Opposition Members to discuss these issues. I am fully aware of the pressures that schools are under as a result of the increased costs they face from national insurance and other issues. We take these issues seriously and will take forward a well-configured spending review as we enter the next spending review period We are committed to directing this school funding where it is needed most. This is why, since April last year, we have started to distribute funding to schools through the new national funding formula. The formula is a fairer way to distribute school funding because each area’s allocation takes into account the individual needs and characteristics of its schools and pupils, not accidents of geography or history—not, as my right hon. Friend the Member for Harlow put it, on the basis of a postcode lottery Schools are already benefiting from the gains delivered by the national funding formula, which provides every local authority with more money for every pupil in every school, while allocating the biggest increases to the schools that have been most underfunded. This year, the most historically underfunded schools will attract increases of up to 6% compared with 2017-18. My hon. Friend the Member for East Worthing and Shoreham (Tim Loughton) raised concerns about the historical unfairness of funding in West Sussex, of which, of course, I am well aware. As he will know, the new national funding formula has sought to address that unfairness. That is why it was introduced, why schools in his constituency are attracting 5.5% more per-pupil funding in 2019 than they did in 2017-18, and why West Sussex as a whole has received a £33.5 million increase since that period.
Department for Education — House of Commons, 2019-07-01
Topic: Social Welfare
Timothy Paul Loughton (Conservative, Centre-right): As I said earlier, the extra funding is welcome, but it takes us from the bottom of the last decile to the top. A moment ago, my right hon. Friend mentioned a balanced approach. Will he at least make some mention of children’s social care? So far he has not mentioned it once, although it is the issue on which I focused most of my speech.
Children’s Palliative Care — House of Commons, 2019-07-01
Topic: Social Welfare
Timothy Paul Loughton (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend is a great ambassador on this very important subject. I pay tribute to the Chestnut Tree House hospice, which does such a fantastic job in West Sussex. Does she acknowledge that, because of medical technological advances, many of these children will live for much longer than was anticipated many years ago, and for many of them this is about not care in a hospice but outreach care outside the hospice? It is therefore important that we have good support packages for the parents, including respite and care over a longer term, and that we are more imaginative in the way we build houses, so that children with life-limiting conditions can live in houses—perhaps new social house build—that reflect the increasing physical demands that they will have, so they can stay in their homes to be cared for appropriately?
Free Trade Agreements: NHS/Public Services — House of Commons, 2019-04-25
Topic: Foreign Trade
Questions: If he will ensure that future free trade agreements do not (a) lower standards in and (b) lead to the privatisation of the NHS.; If he will ensure that future free trade agreements do not (a) lower standards in and (b) lead to the privatisation of the NHS.
Liam Fox (Conservative, Centre-right): As we leave the European Union, the Government will ensure that all future trade agreements continue to protect the UK’s right to regulate public services, including the NHS. I have been clear on a number of occasions that more trade should not come at the expense of the high levels of quality and protection enjoyed in the UK.
Free Trade Agreements: NHS/Public Services — House of Commons, 2019-04-25
Topic: Foreign Trade
Questions: If he will ensure that future free trade agreements do not (a) lower standards in and (b) lead to the privatisation of the NHS.; If he will ensure that future free trade agreements do not (a) lower standards in and (b) lead to the privatisation of the NHS.
Liam Fox (Conservative, Centre-right): As I have made clear in questions and in debate in this House, if we look at trade agreements that we have already entered into, for example, in chapter 9 of the EU-Canada comprehensive economic and trade agreement—the cross-border trade and services chapter—article 9.2 makes it very clear that the Government retain the right to regulate in public services. Any changes in the NHS should be a matter for domestic policy debate in the United Kingdom, and not anywhere else.
Free Trade Agreements: NHS/Public Services — House of Commons, 2019-04-25
Topic: Foreign Trade
Questions: If he will ensure that future free trade agreements do not (a) lower standards in and (b) lead to the privatisation of the NHS.; If he will ensure that future free trade agreements do not (a) lower standards in and (b) lead to the privatisation of the NHS.
Liam Fox (Conservative, Centre-right): I am not quite sure how that relates to the question on healthcare, but it is an important point that the WTO rules provide a baseline, and the way in which countries get preferential treatment beyond that baseline is very often through a free trade agreement. That is why we want to see free trade agreements beyond what we have today.
Service Businesses: Overseas Markets — House of Commons, 2019-04-25
Topic: Foreign Trade
George Michael Edward Hollingbery (Conservative, Centre-right): The Government support UK services businesses to access foreign markets in a number of ways, including through trade promotion and facilitation. For example, in March 2019, the DIT took a delegation of eight leading UK FinTech companies to exhibit at Money 20/20 in Singapore. The DIT also works with partners overseas to remove access barriers, opening up new opportunities for UK businesses.
Service Businesses: Overseas Markets — House of Commons, 2019-04-25
Topic: Foreign Trade
Michael Louis David Fabricant (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend will know that in this rather complex world environment, there is a confusion at times under WTO rules between goods and services. Once we leave the EU, get a clean break and regain our place at the WTO table, will he make it a priority to make clearer definitions of what are goods and what are services?
Service Businesses: Overseas Markets — House of Commons, 2019-04-25
Topic: Foreign Trade
George Michael Edward Hollingbery (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank my hon. Friend for his question. He is right; there are a great many complexities at the WTO. In fact, the world is sliding inexorably towards a future of increased protectionism without changes being agreed to at the WTO to address all problems and to cope with new forms of trade that simply did not exist even 10 years ago and that create the confusion he identifies. As a newly independent voice, the UK will be a champion for change, openness and co-operation, because believe me, Mr Speaker, a failure to deal with the problems the WTO faces is not an outcome that anybody should want to contemplate.
Service Businesses: Overseas Markets — House of Commons, 2019-04-25
Topic: Foreign Trade
George Michael Edward Hollingbery (Conservative, Centre-right): In the past week, the Chinese have agreed a joint communiqué with the EU about the forced transfer of intellectual property, which gives us some comfort. We work extensively with the Chinese Government through joint trade reviews to examine various areas of the economy, particularly in services, where we can address this. I believe that progress is being made on this front, but I go back to the point I made to my hon. Friend the Member for Lichfield (Michael Fabricant): this is a complex area. WTO rules make this very difficult to address, and we need to change it.
Service Businesses: Overseas Markets — House of Commons, 2019-04-25
Topic: Foreign Trade
George Michael Edward Hollingbery (Conservative, Centre-right): As I mentioned in answer to the previous question, we are conducting a number of joint trade reviews with India, China and Brazil—some of the largest economies in the world—to ensure that we address some of these access barriers; to ensure that, for example, Chinese-language contracts are translated into an official English version; to ensure that service providers understand what the rules and regulations are; and to ensure that qualifications are matched across the piece. There is a great deal we can do and more that we will do.
Service Businesses: Overseas Markets — House of Commons, 2019-04-25
Topic: Foreign Trade
George Michael Edward Hollingbery (Conservative, Centre-right): As we approach the negotiations with the EU on the future economic partnership, services will play a large part in that. We have signed mutual recognition agreements with Australia and New Zealand, and as for the Norway and Switzerland deals, we should never forget that 35% of pretty much all the goods contracts entered into by the UK is contained within services value. This is not just a matter of pure services, but of goods as well.
Free Trade Agreements: Regions and Devolved Administrations — House of Commons, 2019-04-25
Topic: Foreign Trade
Questions: What steps he is taking to ensure that the (a) regions and (b) devolved Administrations of the UK contribute to the formulation of new free trade agreements.
George Michael Edward Hollingbery (Conservative, Centre-right): We are committed to ensuring a meaningful role for the regions and devolved Administrations in the development of our trade policy. The DIT has been consulting widely on its approach to potential FTAs with regional representatives from local government and local enterprise partnerships. I can further confirm that we are putting in place a new ministerial forum with the devolved Administrations to cover international trade, as well as continuing to discuss wider future working arrangements on trade policy.
Free Trade Agreements: Regions and Devolved Administrations — House of Commons, 2019-04-25
Topic: Foreign Trade
Questions: What steps he is taking to ensure that the (a) regions and (b) devolved Administrations of the UK contribute to the formulation of new free trade agreements.
Rachel Helen Maclean (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank the Minister for that answer. Businesses in Redditch such as Mettis Aerospace, Bee Lighting and Thorlux Lighting are at the heart of global manufacturing and are leading-edge businesses. Will the Minister confirm that he is working closely with representatives of west midlands manufacturing industry to ensure that their interests are represented and our local economy can benefit from future trade agreements?
Free Trade Agreements: Regions and Devolved Administrations — House of Commons, 2019-04-25
Topic: Foreign Trade
Questions: What steps he is taking to ensure that the (a) regions and (b) devolved Administrations of the UK contribute to the formulation of new free trade agreements.
George Michael Edward Hollingbery (Conservative, Centre-right): As my hon. Friend will know, my hon. Friend the Member for Lichfield (Michael Fabricant) is very keen on our keeping up contact with the Mayor of the West Midlands combined authority. We of course do so, and create contacts with businesses that way. The strategic trade advisory group, which will be helping us with FTAs, includes representation from regional business. We will always be there to consult with local business, and I urge my hon. Friend the Member for Redditch (Rachel Maclean) to contact the local DIT business office in Birmingham in relation to any businesses in Redditch that need its help.
Free Trade Agreements: Regions and Devolved Administrations — House of Commons, 2019-04-25
Topic: Foreign Trade
Questions: What steps he is taking to ensure that the (a) regions and (b) devolved Administrations of the UK contribute to the formulation of new free trade agreements.
George Michael Edward Hollingbery (Conservative, Centre-right): I have visited the devolved Administrations several times and I talk with the Ministers on a regular basis. I absolutely agree with the hon. Lady that the devolved Administrations have a key part to play as we go forward and negotiate our free trade agreements. We are currently in negotiation with the DAs on putting together what is known as a concordat on how they will be implemented. The progress on that, to be quite frank with the House, has been disappointingly slow. From our end, we have not reached an agreed policy position, but we will do so shortly, and I am keen that the devolved Administrations are properly involved.
EU Customs Union — House of Commons, 2019-04-25
Topic: Foreign Trade
Questions: What assessment he has made of the implications for the responsibilities of his Department of including UK membership of the EU customs union in the EU-UK political declaration.
Liam Fox (Conservative, Centre-right): The Government’s intention, as provided for in the political declaration, is to secure a tariff-free trading relationship with our European partners, alongside an ambitious independent trade policy with the rest of the world. A customs union would prevent the UK from varying its tariffs and could leave the UK subject, without representation, to the policy of an entity over which MPs had no democratic control.
EU Customs Union — House of Commons, 2019-04-25
Topic: Foreign Trade
Questions: What assessment he has made of the implications for the responsibilities of his Department of including UK membership of the EU customs union in the EU-UK political declaration.
Philip Thomas Hollobone (Conservative, Centre-right): If we were to be part of the EU customs union after Brexit, the United Kingdom, as the world’s fifth biggest economy, could kiss goodbye to any realistic chance of an independent trade policy. For this very good reason, being a member of the customs union was ruled out in the last Conservative party manifesto. Were this to become Government policy, would not the Secretary of State and his entire ministerial team be honour bound to resign?
EU Customs Union — House of Commons, 2019-04-25
Topic: Foreign Trade
Questions: What assessment he has made of the implications for the responsibilities of his Department of including UK membership of the EU customs union in the EU-UK political declaration.
Liam Fox (Conservative, Centre-right): It is very clear that we do not want to see a customs union being put in place for one of the reasons that my hon. Friend has already given, which is that, with us as a third country, the EU would be able to negotiate access to the UK market—the world’s fifth biggest market—without any due consideration of the impact on the United Kingdom. We would find ourselves in a totally new trading position in that access to our market would be traded for us.
EU Customs Union — House of Commons, 2019-04-25
Topic: Foreign Trade
Questions: What assessment he has made of the implications for the responsibilities of his Department of including UK membership of the EU customs union in the EU-UK political declaration.
Martin John Vickers (Conservative, Centre-right): One of the principal benefits of Brexit is of course the ability to set our own trade policies, and many businesses in my constituency—it includes Immingham, the largest port in the country—want to take advantage of the freedoms that will be forthcoming. What additional support will the Secretary of State’s Department offer those businesses?
EU Customs Union — House of Commons, 2019-04-25
Topic: Transportation
Questions: What assessment he has made of the implications for the responsibilities of his Department of including UK membership of the EU customs union in the EU-UK political declaration.
Liam Fox (Conservative, Centre-right): I know that my hon. Friend has taken a very close interest in free ports. We are close to finalising a report on their potential benefits, and he will be one of the first with whom I will share that information.
EU Customs Union — House of Commons, 2019-04-25
Topic: Foreign Trade
Questions: What assessment he has made of the implications for the responsibilities of his Department of including UK membership of the EU customs union in the EU-UK political declaration.
Liam Fox (Conservative, Centre-right): No, I will not commit to that. I have set out the reasons why I believe the application of a common external tariff will be limiting on the UK’s ability to carry out an independent trade policy. What I would say is that we already have the Trade Remedies Authority up and running, and that is the best way to deal with any disputes over steel through WTO rules.[Official Report, 30 April 2019, Vol. 659, c. 2MC.]
EU Customs Union — House of Commons, 2019-04-25
Topic: Foreign Trade
Questions: What assessment he has made of the implications for the responsibilities of his Department of including UK membership of the EU customs union in the EU-UK political declaration.
Liam Fox (Conservative, Centre-right): The United States is perfectly entitled to set out trade objectives, as are we. We believe that trade is best operated through the rules-based international system based on the WTO. Countries can have their own opinions, but that is still the safest, best and most predictable way to carry out global trade.
EU Customs Union — House of Commons, 2019-04-25
Topic: Foreign Trade
Questions: What assessment he has made of the implications for the responsibilities of his Department of including UK membership of the EU customs union in the EU-UK political declaration.
Liam Fox (Conservative, Centre-right): We believe it is possible to get the benefits of a customs union—no tariffs, no quotas and no rules of origin checks—through the mechanism set out in the Government’s proposal on our future relationship with the European Union. The ability to access growing markets will depend on our ability to create trade agreements with those markets. A report by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development suggested that by 2030 the Asian proportion of trade will be above 50% for the first time since the 19th century, and we must be in a position to take advantage of that.
Intellectual Property Rights — House of Commons, 2019-04-25
Topic: Foreign Trade
George Michael Edward Hollingbery (Conservative, Centre-right): The UK’s intellectual property regime is consistently rated as one of the best in the world. The Government are reviewing their future trade policy as we leave the EU and ensuring that existing trade arrangements with global partners—including provisions on intellectual property—continue uninterrupted on the day the UK leaves the EU.
Intellectual Property Rights — House of Commons, 2019-04-25
Topic: Foreign Trade
George Michael Edward Hollingbery (Conservative, Centre-right): I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer I gave a moment ago. We have one of the most robust and respected regimes for IP protection internationally. A specialist group sits in the Department for International Trade and advises on IP matters, and that is very important to this country. We recognise the extent of exports that are driven by games, TV, sports and so on, and that is hugely important to us. SMEs should get in contact with local DIT offices. We can always help and would be delighted to do so.
GREAT Campaign — House of Commons, 2019-04-25
Topic: Foreign Trade
Graham Charles Stuart (Conservative, Centre-right): GREAT is the Government’s most ambitious ever international marketing campaign. [Interruption.] It encourages the world to visit, study and do business in the UK. While Labour Members never lose an opportunity to talk this country down—as the hon. Member for Rhondda (Chris Bryant) has just done there—we use GREAT to sell Britain abroad. If the chuntering from the potential future Speaker could stop for one second, I will say that GREAT works across 144 countries, and for trade and investment in 2019-20, its priorities are the USA, Germany, China, Japan, Australia, India, Canada, France, Italy and Spain.
GREAT Campaign — House of Commons, 2019-04-25
Topic: Education
Victoria Grace Ford (Conservative, Centre-right): Britain’s universities are among our greatest organisations. Some are household names across the world, but some, like Anglia Ruskin University, which is based in Chelmsford as well as Cambridge, are less well known. How is the GREAT campaign supporting our education sector?
GREAT Campaign — House of Commons, 2019-04-25
Topic: Education
Graham Charles Stuart (Conservative, Centre-right): I am grateful to my hon. Friend for that question. I was at the all-party university group yesterday, meeting vice-chancellors and others, to discuss this issue. Just last month, we launched our new international education strategy. As part of that, we are encouraging bids to the GREAT challenge fund to showcase to even more countries the fantastic education offer this country has.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2019-04-25
Topic: Foreign Trade
Liam Fox (Conservative, Centre-right): My Department is responsible for foreign and outward direct investment, establishing an independent trade policy and export promotion. I can announce to the House that UK Export Finance will support an Airbus Defence and Space UK contract worth nearly $500 million to manufacture and deliver two satellites and a ground station for Türksat, Turkey’s communications satellite operator May I also, with your indulgence Mr Speaker, thank two civil servants who are leaving my Department? My principal private secretary, Oliver Christian, has been an outstanding civil servant and I congratulate him on his promotion. I also thank Amy Tinley, my outgoing special adviser, who has been a force of nature in my Department and will be widely missed across the whole of the civil service.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2019-04-25
Topic: International Affairs
Questions: I congratulate the Government on the GREAT campaign but, in this week of St George’s Day, as we celebrate all things English, will the Secretary of State confirm that we are going to promote not only everything British but the component parts of the United Kingdom, including England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales, and indeed our cherished Crown dependencies and overseas territories?
Liam Fox (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend, in his usual way, makes an excellent point. It is not just the fact that we have those very important constituent parts of the United Kingdom to celebrate—we also celebrate our commonality and our unity as expressed through the Union.