argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Parliamentary Scrutiny of Leaving the EU — House of Commons, 2016-10-12
Topic: International Affairs
Christopher John Bryant (Labour, Centre-left): That is an extremely good point. It is often Europe that enables people to think of opportunities in the UK because of cross-border co-operation on education and research skills I would like to come on to the process. The Government have to take the 48% with them. It will not be good enough if, when we leave at the end of the process it is still only 52% of people who think that we have made the right decision. That will be a recipe for disaster and lack of confidence in this country. I would also say to the Government that I have never believed royal prerogative to be absolute. We have fought wars—quite a lot of wars—about this. Even on the question of going to war, the royal prerogative barely exists any more. One could argue that, after the war of American independence, when Parliament, rather than the Government, decided to stop fighting the war, we abandoned the royal prerogative on war-making powers on 22 February 1782. In recent years, it has become absolutely established that we do not send troops to war, except in extreme situations, without the permission and say-so of Parliament. Mr Cameron and William Hague explicitly agreed as much when they lost the vote on Syria in the House and decided not to proceed with the action they had intended to take Prerogative is not absolute in relation to war, and it is certainly not absolute in relation to treaty making. The 1713 treaty of Utrecht had to go through Parliament, and only got through the House of Lords because Queen Anne was persuaded to introduce 12 more Members of the House of Lords. The Government are rapidly increasing the number of Members of the House of Lords, but I hope that they do not do that.
Parliamentary Scrutiny of Leaving the EU — House of Commons, 2016-10-12
Topic: International Affairs
Christopher John Bryant (Labour, Centre-left): That is completely wrong, I am afraid. The hon. Gentleman, too, is an historian, and doubtless an impressive one: I have never got round to reading any of his books, but I am sure that in my present retirement I will have an opportunity to do so. Under the Ponsonby rule of 1924 it is absolutely clear that all treaties are laid before both Houses, and if either House votes down a treaty, the Government will not proceed. I do not think that even in relation to treaties, the Government’s argument stands On timing, the Government seem to anticipate that we will leave the EU, at the very latest, on 1 April 2019. Let us work backwards from that date. Any new domestic legislation resulting from the negotiations would require Royal Assent at least six months before so that it could be implemented in law around the country. That means that a treaty Bill implementing the negotiations would have to be introduced in the Commons or the other place at least 12 months before 1 April 2019 on 1 April 2018, which would fall in the previous Session. I do not think that the Lords would like such a Bill to be carried over, so we may well have to have a two-year Session running through 2017 and 2018 Finally, I will die trying to persuade people that we would be better off in the European Union, but that does not mean that I intend to stand in the way of the will of the British people.
Parliamentary Scrutiny of Leaving the EU — House of Commons, 2016-10-12
Topic: Foreign Trade
Seema Malhotra-Saluja (Labour, Centre-left): Does the hon. Gentleman agree that the way in which we deal with the single market is fundamental for a very different reason? It is about not just the sale of goods, but the development and production of goods, as outlined in some earlier speeches, because our economies are far more connected in terms of the production of goods.
Parliamentary Scrutiny of Leaving the EU — House of Commons, 2016-10-12
Topic: International Affairs
Adrian Edward Bailey (Labour, Centre-left): I am a passionate pro-European, and I campaigned very hard for the remain cause. In common with the constituencies of my fellow black country representatives, my constituency voted by something like two to one to leave. I would ignore that result at my peril, and I would not disrespect it anyway. However, I represent a constituency that has more foundries in it than any other in the United Kingdom. They are closely integrated into the automotive and civil aviation supply chain, which not only depends on the single market to sell its products but is part of a highly integrated process that also depends on being part of a single market. The dilemma that I face—which is reflected to a certain extent in the challenge facing the Government—is how to reconcile the genuine fears of the public with the needs of those who are working in those industries and are dependent on their success, which is in turn dependent on the single market In debates about Europe during previous Governments, the previous Prime Minister might have been keen to criticise the EU for domestic political reasons, but he was adamant that remaining part of the single market was very important for the future of this country. During the referendum campaign, an argument was peddled by the leavers that Britain was so important to the EU’s trading relations that the EU would not dare to insist that we leave the single market. I have some private sympathy with that argument. Once we got past the initial shock and the immediate adverse economic reaction to our leaving the EU, business and the economy recovered almost instinctively, because the mood music suggested that that would indeed be the situation As the right hon. and learned Member for Rushcliffe (Mr Clarke) explained, the situation unfortunately changed as a result of comments by Ministers at the Tory party conference. Having said in September that they were not going to spell out their negotiating position in the Chamber, they appeared to take very hard public positions at conference on their negotiating stance with the EU. That completely changed the balance of the public’s and business’s perception of what the Government’s approach was going to be. It came across that the priority was immigration, immigration, immigration, not the single market.
Parliamentary Scrutiny of Leaving the EU — House of Commons, 2016-10-12
Topic: International Affairs
Adrian Edward Bailey (Labour, Centre-left): No, I am not taking interventions The reaction of business, higher education and the markets since then has potentially caused us huge problems. That underlines the need for the Secretary of State for Brexit to reverse his position and come to this House to spell out priorities that emphasise our commitment, as a Chamber, to being part of the single market. Without that, we might go into the negotiations with our negotiating parties thinking we have no such commitment.
Parliamentary Scrutiny of Leaving the EU — House of Commons, 2016-10-12
Topic: International Affairs
Ian Colin Lucas (Labour, Centre-left): I will put to the right hon. Gentleman the question I put to the Secretary of State. If he believes in parliamentary sovereignty, will the Government please present their opening position to Parliament for scrutiny and a vote before they begin to conduct negotiations? Will he give the Chamber an assurance on that?
Implementation of the 1995 and 2011 Pension Acts — House of Commons, 2016-10-12
Topic: Labor
Tom Blenkinsop (Labour, Centre-left): I rise to present a petition relating to the implementation of the 1995 and 2011 Pension Acts. More than 200 of my constituents have signed the petition. Credit for collecting those names should go to my local WASPI campaigners, who have brought together many Teessiders who are affected, and organised local activity against that injustice. I hope the Government listen to them. The petitioners request that the House of Commons urges the Government to make fair transitional arrangements for all women born on or after 6 April 1951, who have unfairly borne the burden of the increase in the state pension age The Petition of the residents of Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland. [P001937]
Gypsies and Travellers — House of Commons, 2016-10-12
Topic: Education
Katherine Anne Green (Labour, Centre-left): As the hon. Gentleman knows, this is a subject that deeply concerns me, as it does him. He is right to talk about the need for a cross-governmental review. Would he include in that list the Department for Education? As he rightly says, the educational outcomes for those children are very poor. Too often, because schools do not meet their needs, they end up with substandard home schooling.
Soil Carbon — House of Commons, 2016-10-13
Topic: Environment
Mary Helen Creagh (Labour, Centre-left): I thank the Minister for that reply and welcome her to her new role. Soil is a Cinderella ecosystems issue, yet it is vital for growing food, preventing floods, and capturing and storing carbon. The Environmental Audit Committee’s recent report welcomed the Government’s commitment to increase soil carbon levels by that 0.4% a year as part of our Paris climate commitments, but we could not find any evidence of Government policies to support that goal. With the environment plan and the carbon plan delayed, can she set out as a matter of urgency specific, measurable time-bound plans to improve the nation’s soil and peat lands?
Food Labelling — House of Commons, 2016-10-13
Topic: Agriculture
Kerry Gillian McCarthy (Labour, Centre-left): The Prime Minister recently said that, with Brexit looming, we will be able to choose our own methods of food labelling, but is there not a lot more that we could do on country of origin and method of production labelling? While we are still in the European Union, we ought to emulate some of our EU partners.
Marine Habitats — House of Commons, 2016-10-13
Topic: Environment
Benjamin Peter James Bradshaw (Labour, Centre-left): The right hon. Lady will know that the marine protections that have led to huge improvements in water quality and the conservation of our marine environment are underpinned largely by EU law. Can she guarantee now that, if we leave the EU, the standards that we currently enjoy will not be any less than they are now?
Marine Habitats — House of Commons, 2016-10-13
Topic: Environment
Barry John Sheerman (Labour, Centre-left): Does the Minister agree that while marine conservation is fine—Labour Members support it wholeheartedly—we have to stop polluting the marine environment with the waste that we pour into it, all over the world? We need the EU and global intervention to stop the horrendous pollution of marine life throughout the world.
Bovine TB — House of Commons, 2016-10-13
Topic: Agriculture
Questions: How many (a) cattle have been slaughtered and (b) badgers have been culled as a result of efforts to prevent the spread of bovine tuberculosis since 2010.
Mary Theresa Glindon (Labour, Centre-left): Tragically, the social costs of bovine TB fall largely on the farming community, but the enormous financial burden is shared with the taxpayer. Given that DEFRA has stated that there is considerable uncertainty in the value-for-money figures for the new cull, how will the Minister justify them to the general public?
Rural Payments Agency — House of Commons, 2016-10-13
Topic: Agriculture
Angela Christine Smith (Labour, Centre-left): When the chief executive of the Rural Payments Agency came to the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee earlier this year, he made a commitment to pay the majority of claims by 1 December, not 90% by the end of December. Four weeks is a long time for a farmer. Will the RPA make the majority of those payments at the beginning of the month?
Rural Payments Agency — House of Commons, 2016-10-13
Topic: Agriculture
Rachael Helen Maskell (Labour, Centre-left): Thousands of farmers have been pushed into acute financial hardship, anxiety or stress owing to the failure of the Rural Payments Agency. In the past year, 62% of payments were very late and many have still not been paid. Now the Government are planning further delays of payment, which is unacceptable. Why will not the Minister recruit the staff needed to pay everyone all they are owed by this Christmas and, in the interim, institute bridging loans?
Food Labelling — House of Commons, 2016-10-13
Topic: Agriculture
Chinyelu Susan Onwurah (Labour, Centre-left): Mr Speaker, you might think of Newcastle upon Tyne Central as an urban constituency, but actually we produce excellent beef from the lucky cattle that graze the nutritious grass on the stunning Town Moor. We are developing Toon Beef labels, but labelling generally needs to be better if consumers are to make informed choices. What practical measures is she taking to ensure that the voluntary and mandatory requirements she spoke of reflect regional origin and animal welfare?
Department for Exiting the European Union — House of Commons, 2016-10-13
Topic: Agriculture
Questions: Improvements to air quality and action to tackle road transport pollution in this country have been driven by EU legislation and the enforcement mechanisms that underpin them. In September the Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the hon. Member for Suffolk Coastal (Dr Coffey), alongside the Under-Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, the hon. Member for Worcester (Mr Walker), was asked seven times by the Environmental Audit Committee whether the Government would retain EU air quality limits following exit from the EU, but she failed to give that commitment. Weeks later, why has she still not confirmed that EU air quality limits will be retained or improved, or explained how they will be enforced, which is essential to cutting premature deaths?
Rachael Helen Maskell (Labour, Centre-left): May I welcome the Secretary of State to her place? I am sure she has had discussions with the Department for Exiting the European Union about the impact of the 16% fall in the value of the pound since the referendum outcome. In the light of that, what financial drivers to replace the common agricultural policy will she prioritise, with the mutual support of that Department, to enable farmers to plan now for the future and to remain productive while making the necessary progress on environmental measures?
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2016-10-13
Topic: Agriculture
Stephen Hepburn (Labour, Centre-left): The Secretary of State seems such a nice lady, so I do not know what enjoyment she can take from the thought of a fox being torn apart. May I take it from the silence of her and her Department lately that she has dropped the idea of having a vote in this House on foxhunting?
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2016-10-13
Topic: Agriculture
Questions: The Secretary of State will be aware that consent has been given for the first horizontal shale gas site at Preston New Road in my constituency. Will she assure me that the Environment Agency will conduct immediate on-the-spot inspections, and that many of them will be unannounced? What powers does the Environment Agency have to close down a site if it finds it to be in breach of regulations?; My constituents and those of my hon. Friend the Member for Cannock Chase (Amanda Milling) and my right hon. Friend the Member for South Staffordshire (Gavin Williamson) enjoy the wonderful Cannock Chase, so we were delighted by the Conservative manifesto commitment to plant trees. May we have an update on how many have been planted?; Over the summer, the European Union announced proposals to bring 100 megabits to all EU citizens by 2025. The Tory party talks about 10 megabits but has no plan and no funding. Will the Secretary of State join the Countryside Alliance, the National Farmers Union, the Labour party and millions of frustrated would-be rural digerati in condemning the disgraceful state of rural broadband in our country, and say what she is going to do about it?; The common fisheries policy is among the very worst aspects of our membership of the European Union. Our waters have been invaded by European trawlermen and there has been vast overfishing. What plans do the Government have to repatriate Britain’s territorial fishing waters and revive the great British fishing industry?; In Wales, the common agricultural policy provides £200 million a year, in part to protect the long-term future of the Welsh countryside. Will the Secretary of State or one of her Ministers be meeting representatives of the Welsh Government, including the Cabinet Secretary for Environment and Rural Affairs, to ensure that EU funding to protect the Welsh environment is replaced pound for pound by the UK Government?; Parts of my constituency were devastated by the Boxing day floods last year, and the council is still struggling to restore the damaged infrastructure. It calculates that even after the £750,000 it has received from the Department for Transport, it faces a £2.6 million shortfall in repairing the damage. Will my right hon. Friend speak with Ministers across Government to see what further help they can provide to speed up the reinstatement process?; Will agriculture and fisheries powers be devolved to the Scottish Parliament after we leave the European Union—or do the Government want to repatriate those powers to Westminster, bypassing the Scottish Parliament?
Nicholas Desmond John Smith (Labour, Centre-left): Given the recent discovery of a livestock strain of MRSA in British meat products in UK supermarkets, what action is the Secretary of State’s Department taking to stop the emergence of resistant bacteria? Will she increase support to UK farmers on the use of antibiotics in meat production, to address real concerns about food safety and exports?
Community Relations — House of Commons, 2016-10-13
Topic: Law and Crime
Madeleine Moon (Labour, Centre-left): Recent research on extremism suggests that a sense of humiliation, particularly among traumatised communities and individuals, is a major driver of extremism. Are the Church Commissioners aware of the need to look at bullying and traumatisation?
Baby Loss — House of Commons, 2016-10-13
Topic: Social Welfare
Chinyelu Susan Onwurah (Labour, Centre-left): I want to add my congratulations to the hon. Lady and also to express my intense respect and admiration for her moving and evidence-based opening to this debate. She mentioned the Butterfly Awards. Daddys with Angels, a charity that offers online help for those who have lost a baby, is campaigning for a day—15 October—to recognise baby loss, as well as raising awareness. Does she agree that that could help to make us more aware as well as helping those who have suffered to gain greater respect and understanding?
Baby Loss — House of Commons, 2016-10-13
Topic: Social Welfare
Jamieson Ronald Reed (Labour, Centre-left): In relation to the integrated bereavement care pathway, does the hon. Lady envisage the same level of service for parents who have suffered bereavement post-hospital discharge as the service that parents would receive following a bereavement in their own home?
Baby Loss — House of Commons, 2016-10-13
Topic: Social Welfare
Keith Anthony Vaz (Labour, Centre-left): I congratulate the hon. Gentleman, the hon. Member for Eddisbury (Antoinette Sandbach) and all others who have been involved with the all-party group. When my child died at term, 23 years ago, we did not have a bereavement suite in Leicester, although we do now. The issue is not just parents’ ability to grieve and be with their child; it is also about getting expert help and counselling at that moment. My wife was told that she would never have children again after the stillbirth, but we had two children subsequently. It is so important to get that advice right at that time. Does he agree?
Baby Loss — House of Commons, 2016-10-13
Topic: Social Welfare
Kevan David Jones (Labour, Centre-left): I know that the hon. Gentleman does not want to name individual charities, but Sands does a great job. The point raised with me by Ashleigh Corker, a north-east co-ordinator who lives in my constituency, is that one of the most powerful things that Sands can do is put parents in touch with other parents—people who have gone through the same thing—so that they can share experiences. Does he agree that that is a very powerful thing to do? A lot of people can empathise with what parents are going through, but unless a person has gone through this themselves, it is very difficult to understand.
Hormone Pregnancy Tests — House of Commons, 2016-10-13
Topic: Law and Crime
Yasmin Qureshi (Labour, Centre-left): I thank the hon. Gentleman. I shall come on to the issue of the independence of the inquiry and the members of the panel The Minister indicated that the inquiry would be carried out by an independent panel of experts and said that it would look at everything that had happened and the lessons to be learned. Our present concern is about what happened, who did what and who failed to do what, and what compensation and apology victims will receive I shall briefly highlight some of the evidence that we have uncovered, which shows what happened in the 1960s and 1970s.
Hormone Pregnancy Tests — House of Commons, 2016-10-13
Topic: Government Operations
Yasmin Qureshi (Labour, Centre-left): I was just coming to the end of my speech, Madam Deputy Speaker Lastly, we are very grateful that the inquiry has been set up, but we have genuine concerns about what is happening with it and where it is going. As has been said, at the end of the day, there is no point in having the inquiry if it does not look at the things that matter, one of which must be to provide an explanation of the regulatory failures and the cover-ups in the 1960s and 1970s.
Hormone Pregnancy Tests — House of Commons, 2016-10-13
Topic: Law and Crime
Seema Malhotra-Saluja (Labour, Centre-left): I thank the hon. Lady for her intervention. That is certainly the reason why Bethan Dickson has written to me. She said: "That’s why I support an inquiry to establish the facts and explain to the country how this could have happened just a short while after the Thalidomide scandal." Bethan’s story highlights the impact of this drug and how it was prescribed and the effects that it still has to this day. I have been struck as well by the work of Marie and her campaign, their patience and their systematic and honest work. They have desired to work in partnership simply to find answers, for justice and to ensure everything is done so that this does not happen again, but I am concerned that they are not being met halfway by an inquiry that does not appear to have had effective governance while there are concerns about the constitution of the panel, the robustness of its procedures and the approach to the evidence collected and how it is analysed I want to close my contribution today with some questions to the Minister and some commitments that I would like to hear being made today. I believe that it is time to make sure that there is commitment today to respond to the issues raised and to do so formally in writing to my hon. Friend the Member for Bolton South East; to reconfirm the status of the inquiry, its terms of reference and its timetable for delivery; to say how quality will be ensured; to explain what action is being taken to address the concerns that have been raised by hon. Members today; and to state on the public record that Ministers will see through their commitment on this inquiry to a report and findings that will command the confidence of the House and, indeed, the families and victims who have waited so long for those answers and for justice.