argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Educational Settings — House of Commons, 2020-03-18
Topic: Education
Gavin Alexander Williamson (Conservative, Centre-right): I can absolutely guarantee that schools will be fully reimbursed for the costs they incur as a result of providing those meals. Obviously, we would look at ensuring additional help as a long-term measure. I will certainly take up my hon. Friend’s final point with the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, who will be looking at such matters.
Educational Settings — House of Commons, 2020-03-18
Topic: Education
Gavin Alexander Williamson (Conservative, Centre-right): I believe that for early years settings and nurseries we have probably gone further than any other aspect of business in making it absolutely clear that we will continue to guarantee the funding that they are in receipt of from Government, regardless of where the roll is. We made that statement yesterday. I very much hope that that point has been percolating right through the sector, but I will certainly ask the Under-Secretary of State for Education, my hon. Friend the Member for Chelmsford (Vicky Ford), to continue to reiterate it to all nursery providers.
Educational Settings — House of Commons, 2020-03-18
Topic: Social Welfare
Gavin Alexander Williamson (Conservative, Centre-right): This is why we have made clear the continued funding that we would be paying to nurseries, but also why the Chancellor has touched on the issue of a business rate relief, which is obviously an important component in the cost base of many of these nurseries.
Educational Settings — House of Commons, 2020-03-18
Topic: Education
Gavin Alexander Williamson (Conservative, Centre-right): As has been outlined, we will ensure that all children, who have done so much work towards their exams both at GCSE and A-level will get a fair system for their grades. We recognise that there will sometimes be disagreement over that, so it is vital to ensure a proper and robust system and a means of redress for those children. That is something that we will have in place with Ofqual, and we have already had those discussions. On funding, we have been consistently clear in this statement that costs incurred by schools will be fully reimbursed.
Future of Farming: Somerset — House of Commons, 2020-03-18
Topic: Agriculture
Ian Richard Peregrine Liddell-Grainger (Conservative, Centre-right): That will teach me to watch the time more carefully I have asked a lot in this short debate. In the weeks and months ahead, farmers will become more important to us all. We will rely on what they produce in ways that we have probably never considered but now need to because we are in a national emergency.
Future of Farming: Somerset — House of Commons, 2020-03-18
Topic: Agriculture
Ian Richard Peregrine Liddell-Grainger (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Lady knows me well—she tempts me, and I will rise to the bait. Yes, it is appalling that the council sold them off. I was totally against their being sold off. County farms were the way that young people got into farming—the way people could get on the farming ladder. The farms were not big—they were comparatively small—but they gave people a chance. Any county that sold them off is an absolute disgrace. Yes, of course, I know that they wanted the money, but we have stopped an entire generation of young people going into farming. I am 61, and the average age of farmers is my age. How long can we sustain real farmers? I do not think that the Government can be blamed for that—although I would probably quite like to blame them, they cannot be blamed—because it was done under many different Governments over many years. Places like Somerset, the old county of which we were all part in the old days, had a huge amount of farms, and they were enormous and did such a good job. They have gone over a long time, covering three generations—basically since 1945—but the hon. Lady makes an absolutely fair point and I agree with her I have one final appeal to the Minister. Sedgemoor auction centre is crucial to farmers, as it is—believe it or not—to all of us here. Whatever our party, whatever our age and however much we are at risk, just being here shows that we are still in session. We must support that and stay in business here, and that goes for our farmers, too: they want to stay in business there.
Universal Credit — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: Labor
Simon Anthony Hart (Conservative, Centre-right): I think all of us, on both sides of the House, recognise that the system does not always work as well as it should. We all have casework that would indicate that. Our ongoing commitment—indeed, I was doing this back in 2011—is to make sure that, where people do struggle with the system or fall through the gaps, we act quickly, efficiently and humanely. Any cases that the hon. Lady or other Members have where that is not happening, please raise them with us and we will take them up with the Department for Work and Pensions.
Welsh Economy — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: Macroeconomics
Simon Anthony Hart (Conservative, Centre-right): The unemployment rate in Wales is at a record low. There are 144,000 more people in work in Wales than in 2010 and 90,000 fewer workless households. The Government are committed to driving further economic growth and levelling up across the UK, including west Wales.
Welsh Economy — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: Labor
Stephen Crabb (Conservative, Centre-right): As we prepare to celebrate St David’s Day, now is a good moment to celebrate the enormous and excellent progress that has been made in reducing unemployment in Wales. Does my right hon. Friend agree that what is really encouraging is the fact that the long-term lag between Welsh employment levels and the UK average has now closed, with more people in Wales going out to work than ever before?
Welsh Economy — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: Macroeconomics
Simon Anthony Hart (Conservative, Centre-right): I am grateful to my right hon. Friend and constituency neighbour for raising this issue. He will be as pleased as I am that the figures in his own constituency, when compared with 2010, are as good as they are. It is absolutely right that the Government’s job, in collaboration with the Welsh Government if that is necessary, is to ensure we create the circumstances where that trend continues. He has my absolute assurance that that will be the case.
Welsh Economy — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: International Affairs
Simon Anthony Hart (Conservative, Centre-right): I have to say that, if I was a business or individual affected by the events of the last few days, the last thing I would expect to hear in this House is the politicisation of a very difficult situation. The conversations I have had in face-to-face meetings with First Minister Drakeford in Cardiff have been constructive. He has at no stage made the observations the hon. Lady has made to me. We have made it absolutely clear that as soon as the damage is assessed we are ready to assist, notwithstanding the fact that this is a devolved responsibility, and it is absolutely right that we as a UK Government should respect the devolution settlement. I will just finish by saying that local authority leaders—[Interruption.] I will leave it at that point.
Welsh Economy — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: Energy
Simon Anthony Hart (Conservative, Centre-right): As the right hon. Lady knows—she may even have been at the debate that I hosted in this Chamber where we discussed the matter into the early hours of the morning—it is undisputed that a tidal lagoon has a future in the UK, and in particular in Wales. The difficulty that we had over the tidal lagoon project in Swansea was in relation to the company proposal itself. So I hope that she can be reassured that this is part of the energy mix—it is part of the renewable commitment that we have made. The tidal lagoon is still under discussion.
Welsh Economy — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: Environment
Simon Anthony Hart (Conservative, Centre-right): I can absolutely offer that guarantee; it is a repeat of the guarantee that has been offered by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and, indeed, the Prime Minister himself.
Welsh Economy — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: Government Operations
Simon Anthony Hart (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend makes a very good point. The answer is yes. The answer lies in greater collaboration and co-operation across a wide range of agencies, and even those that he has mentioned. I believe we are learning some stark and important lessons from this, and I agree with his assessment.
Regulatory Divergence from the EU — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: Foreign Trade
David Thomas Charles Davies (Conservative, Centre-right): Far from lowering standards, the UK already exceeds the EU minimum requirements in several areas, including on workers’ rights and environmental targets. We will continue in that vein, with an independent trade policy, and in so doing, unleash the enormous potential of the UK and Welsh economies.
Regulatory Divergence from the EU — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: Foreign Trade
David Thomas Charles Davies (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Gentleman is right to raise the importance of the automotive sector to south Wales and he is correct in saying that the Government are seeking a full free trade arrangement that will allow full access to the European market. If for any reason the EU does not realise that that is in its interests—it exports more cars and automotive parts to us than we do to the EU—I cannot absolutely say what will happen, but it will be at the forefront of my mind and the minds of all my colleagues that we would want to support the automotive industry in south Wales.
Cross-border Transport Links — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: Transportation
Questions: What assessment he has made of the adequacy of cross-border transport links between Wales and (a) Reading, (b) Farnborough, (c) Guildford and (d) Gatwick Airport.
David Thomas Charles Davies (Conservative, Centre-right): Earlier this week, we announced 2,000 extra weekday seats on CrossCountry trains between Cardiff and the midlands. We have already reduced journey times by 14 minutes on the Great Western main line between Swansea and London, and connectivity to north Wales will benefit from the introduction of HS2, which will shorten journey times and drive economic growth throughout the region.
Cross-border Transport Links — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: Transportation
Questions: What assessment he has made of the adequacy of cross-border transport links between Wales and (a) Reading, (b) Farnborough, (c) Guildford and (d) Gatwick Airport.
Ranil Malcolm Jayawardena (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank my hon. Friend for that answer. As well as rail links—not just the ones he mentioned, but the offshoots from the Great Western line to Guildford and Gatwick—does he agree that to unleash Wales’ potential it will be critical to improve links between the M3 and M4, as Transport for the South East has recently recommended?
Cross-border Transport Links — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: Transportation
Questions: What assessment he has made of the adequacy of cross-border transport links between Wales and (a) Reading, (b) Farnborough, (c) Guildford and (d) Gatwick Airport.
David Thomas Charles Davies (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend is absolutely right to draw attention to the importance of the road network, particularly the M4, to increasing economic productivity in Wales. I hope that Labour Members are aware of the importance of the M4 and will encourage the Welsh Labour Government to accept the borrowing made available to them to build the M4 relief road in south Wales.
Cross-border Transport Links — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: Transportation
Questions: What assessment he has made of the adequacy of cross-border transport links between Wales and (a) Reading, (b) Farnborough, (c) Guildford and (d) Gatwick Airport.
David Thomas Charles Davies (Conservative, Centre-right): I am unable to say when exactly it will begin, but I can assure the hon. Member that it is our policy to make sure it begins. I fully recognise the importance of the links between Heathrow and Reading and the importance of that for the rail network across Wales, which will see £1.5 billion spent on it during control period 6. Overall, he will welcome the fact that we are making the biggest investment in our rail infrastructure in the country since Victorian times.
Bank Holiday: 23 June — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: Labor
Questions: If he will hold discussions with the Welsh Government on the potential merits of the creation of a UK bank holiday on 23 June each year.
Peter William Bone (Conservative, Centre-right): Well, the Secretary of State needs to change his mind. Wales has one of the lowest numbers of bank holidays in Europe. Some countries in Europe have twice the number. What has he got against giving workers in Wales an extra day off?
Public Bodies: Buying British — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: International Affairs
Simon Anthony Hart (Conservative, Centre-right): I can completely agree with the right hon. Gentleman, and that opportunity is now simpler, given that we have left the EU. Our job here and with the Welsh Government is to make sure that those procurement rules reflect the fantastic products Wales has to offer.
Public Bodies: Buying British — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: Energy
Simon Anthony Hart (Conservative, Centre-right): Yes, that will definitely be an objective of the UK Government. As the hon. Lady knows, we take the future of the steel industry in Wales extremely seriously, and I want to ensure that every opportunity it has to contribute to UK infrastructure projects is taken.
Public Bodies: Buying British — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: Environment
Simon Anthony Hart (Conservative, Centre-right): I know that my hon. Friend’s constituency was particularly hard hit by recent weather events, and her recognition of that is to be commended. I also completely agree that everything we need to do as a UK Government, in collaboration with our colleagues in Cardiff—I keep making this point—will deliver the sort of result that she is seeking.
Public Bodies: Buying British — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: International Affairs
Simon Anthony Hart (Conservative, Centre-right): Part of the problem has been caused by the restrictions imposed on us by our relationship with Europe. The change in those terms will free up the opportunity for the UK and Welsh Governments to ensure that procurement rules are changed as well, and to unpick the problems to which the hon. Gentleman has referred.
Cross-Border Working — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: Macroeconomics
David Thomas Charles Davies (Conservative, Centre-right): I have already held constructive discussions with Welsh Government Ministers on various issues, including cities and regional growth deals, which have the potential to create jobs and economic growth in Wales and strengthen cross-border working to benefit both sides of the border.
Cross-Border Working — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: Transportation
Robin John Millar (Conservative, Centre-right): Many residents of Aberconwy, and, indeed, north Wales as a whole, rely on good road and rail links along the north Wales coast. Does the Minister recognise the importance of that east-west axis and the connections that it offers with England so that people can have contact with families, public services, work and, dare I say, even the Crewe hub as part of HS2?
Cross-Border Working — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: Transportation
David Thomas Charles Davies (Conservative, Centre-right): We certainly recognise the importance of those east-west links in both north and south Wales, as will be clear from the improvements in the rail and road infrastructure and the growth deals. I recently had a chance to see cross-border working in action when Dŵr Cymru was taking water in from English counties in order to ensure that fresh water continued to run in Monmouth after the floods, and I pay tribute to it for that, but I can assure my hon. Friend that we will recognise the importance and benefits of cross-border working because we are a Unionist party.
Cross-Border Working — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: Transportation
Alun Craig Williams (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend said that he recognised the east-west links between north and south Wales and England, but links with mid-Wales are also important. The Cambrian line—the Shrewsbury-to-Aberystwyth line—needs a signalling upgrade. Will he convene a meeting with me and other interested parties?
Cross-Border Working — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: Transportation
David Thomas Charles Davies (Conservative, Centre-right): It is always a pleasure to meet my hon. Friend, who has done a fantastic job in lobbying for better east-west links in his own constituency, and I shall look forward with interest to hearing what he has to say. No doubt those in the Treasury and the Department for Transport will also take a keen in interest in the subject.
Victims of Sexual Violence — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: Law and Crime
Questions: What recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Justice on the Government’s support for victims of sexual violence in Wales.
Simon Anthony Hart (Conservative, Centre-right): I am proud that this Government have recently announced that victims of rape and sexual assault will be helped by a 50% funding boost for specialist support services. That will provide additional funding for the vital services offered at six rape support centres across Wales.
Victims of Sexual Violence — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: International Affairs
Questions: What recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Justice on the Government’s support for victims of sexual violence in Wales.
Simon Anthony Hart (Conservative, Centre-right): I can reassure my hon. Friend that that is the shared ambition and intention of the UK Government. May I also commend her for bringing this matter to the House’s attention? There are few more important issues facing us at the moment.
Cross-border Rail — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: Transportation
David Thomas Charles Davies (Conservative, Centre-right): The Secretary of State for Wales is due to meet the Secretary for State for Transport in the coming weeks, when they will discuss how we can build on the new superfast rail service between south Wales and London and the improved connectivity that HS2 will bring to north Wales.
Cross-border Rail — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: Transportation
David Thomas Charles Davies (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Gentleman makes an important point, and I would be happy to discuss it with him. I can absolutely assure him of our commitment to rail infrastructure in south Wales as well as in north Wales, which is why we have spent an extra £1.5 billion during this control period and laid on thousands of extra seats between London and south Wales.
PIP Assessment Centre: Accessibility — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: Education
Questions: What recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on the location of an accessible personal independence payment assessment centre for disabled and vulnerable claimants in north-west Wales.
Simon Anthony Hart (Conservative, Centre-right): I have written to the relevant DWP Minister, and I know that he has plans to meet local MPs to discuss assessment centre access in the region. The Government will support Capita to ensure that it finds a suitable, long-term site in north Wales.
Engagements — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: Macroeconomics
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (Conservative, Centre-right): The right hon. Gentleman asks what this Government have been doing in the past few days, so let me tell him. Not only have we been investing massively in flood defences and compensating those who have suffered from flooding, but we have been stopping the early release of terrorists; we have restored the nurses’ bursary; we are beginning work on 40 new hospitals; and we are recruiting 20,000 more police officers. We can do that because we have a strong and dynamic economy, with employment at record highs, unemployment down to the lowest levels since the early ’70s, wages going up and home ownership up. What are the Opposition doing? They are still deciding—[Interruption.] Listen to them jabbering away.
Engagements — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: International Affairs
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (Conservative, Centre-right): Quite right, Mr Speaker. They are jabbering away, because they still cannot decide whether or not they want to be in the European Union, and the hottest topic of debate in the Labour party is what job the right hon. Gentleman should have in the shadow Cabinet after the leadership election. They are engaging themselves in narcissistic debate about the Labour party. We are getting on in delivering on the people’s priorities.
Engagements — House of Commons, 2020-02-26
Topic: Transportation
Questions: The Prime Minister will be aware of the concern in settled rural communities such as those in my constituency because of the intentional unauthorised development of Traveller sites. That leads to large numbers of lorries and caravans coming on to land where there is no planning permission and, subsequently, the ignoring of enforcement when the local authority tries to intervene. The Government have said that they will bring forward measures to try to tackle these planning issues. Will the Prime Minister put his authority behind this and get it sorted out?; This is a Government who are delivering for the people, so I am sure the Prime Minister shares my concerns about the delay in the delivery of the Maidstone East line, which runs through my constituency and others. Will he intervene to ensure that there are no further delays on this vital railway line?
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank my hon. Friend for rightly raising the issue of rail connections between Maidstone East and the City. In addition to the £48 billion we are putting into the railways, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Transport has just indicated to me that those connections are his highest priority.