argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Honda in Swindon — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Foreign Trade
James Roger Cartlidge (Conservative, Centre-right): I have a sense of déjà vu, because few days after the meaningful vote was lost, Philips announced the closure of the Philips Avant plant—the largest plant in my constituency. It said explicitly that it was not due to Brexit that production was being moved to the Netherlands. The key point is surely this: we know it is bad news, whatever the cause; we now have to get new inward investment and make ourselves competitive and attractive. Will we do that better if we trade on WTO terms, or if we have a deal with the EU, with tariff-free access to our largest market?
Honda in Swindon — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Foreign Trade
Gregory David Clark (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend puts it extremely well. In a world of competitive investment, we need to deploy all the assets and strengths at our disposal. Internationally mobile investments are competed for by many other countries, so we have to get everything right. It seems to me that to have trading relationships that are the bare minimum of international arrangements is a handicap rather than an advantage.
Honda in Swindon — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Technology
Gregory David Clark (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Gentleman is very familiar with and experienced in this area, and I understand his point. I would say that the reasons behind this decision and some others have been not so much about demand—in this case—but about an acceleration of a change in technology and how investment can be consolidated, so I am not sure that his proposal is the answer to the reasons that Honda cited, but I take into account the representation he makes.
Honda in Swindon — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Technology
Gregory David Clark (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Gentleman ought to come to talk to me about the automotive sector deal, which has brought investment into research and development from across the industry. He talks about aerospace; there is a sector deal with the aerospace sector that, again, is about positioning Britain at the leading edge of new aerospace technology. These commitments are being made by industry as well as by Government, and I would be very happy to see him to talk him through what we are doing with the industry.
Honda in Swindon — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Foreign Trade
Richard Grosvenor Plunkett-Ernle-Erle-Drax (Conservative, Centre-right): My sympathy extends to all those who are going to lose their jobs. I remind the Secretary of State that we are leaving the EU and that we must be able to strike our own trade deals around the world if we are to flourish as a country, as I believe we would, so any deal that we sign with the EU that prevents us from doing that is not acceptable.
Honda in Swindon — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Foreign Trade
Gregory David Clark (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend makes an important point. It has been a clear part of our mandate to negotiate in a way that allows us to strike free trade agreements. That is provided for in the agreement that is on the table, but I think the wrong thing to do in furtherance of that would be to lose our ability to trade without tariffs and frictions with, as we might say, our existing customers.
Honda in Swindon — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Foreign Trade
Kevin Paul Hollinrake (Conservative, Centre-right): This announcement is very sad news for the workers at Swindon and for the jobs and businesses in the supply chain, but does my right hon. Friend agree that this is much more to do with the EU-Japan trade deal than it is about Brexit? The reality is that free trade deals create winners and losers in the short term, but in the longer term, there are benefits for all from free trade.
Honda in Swindon — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Foreign Trade
Gregory David Clark (Conservative, Centre-right): Again, I think it is for the company to account for the reasons for the decision, but my hon. Friend is absolutely right to point to the fact that any new free trade agreement adjusts the pattern of trade; that is evident. To me, this seems to underline the case for us to have a free trade agreement with Japan, and unless and until we do so, not to lose the ability to be part of the EU deal.
Honda in Swindon — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Foreign Trade
Gregory David Clark (Conservative, Centre-right): I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for his kind words. He embodies the spirit of continuity in understanding and support for the sector, which I said at the beginning of my statement is very important for investors. On the future partnership agreement, in fairness, it was the EU that maintained that those discussions could take place only after we have left the EU. That is part of its negotiating mandate. That is why it has not been possible to agree the final state, but it is the case—I have worked hard to convey the requirements of manufacturing industry—that within those negotiations, the opportunity to have frictionless trading arrangements should be there and be noted, and it is one of the reasons why firms and sectors support the deal.
Honda in Swindon — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Macroeconomics
Gregory David Clark (Conservative, Centre-right): Companies’ prime requirement is that the uncertainty be brought to an end. It is in the gift of the House to meet that requirement, and we cannot and should not leave it a moment longer. We will have the opportunity in the days ahead to conclude this matter. That is the best thing the House can do for manufacturing and other sectors of the economy.
Honda in Swindon — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Foreign Trade
Philip Thomas Hollobone (Conservative, Centre-right): May I applaud the response of the two hon. Members for Swindon, my hon. and learned Friend the Member for South Swindon (Robert Buckland) and my hon. Friend the Member for North Swindon (Justin Tomlinson), and the Business Secretary for his swift plans to go to Swindon and establish the taskforce, but may I criticise him for not being clear enough that this is not a Brexit-related issue? Had we voted to stay in the EU in June 2016, chances are he would be here today at that Dispatch Box making a statement about the closure of the Honda plant. We know this because Honda is closing its car factory in Turkey, which is a member of the customs union, and because Honda’s chief European officer said on the radio today: "This is not a Brexit-related issue for us" Will the Business Secretary make it absolutely clear that we will offer every support to the Honda workers but that this closure announcement has nothing to do with Brexit?
Honda in Swindon — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Foreign Trade
Gregory David Clark (Conservative, Centre-right): I am grateful to my hon. Friend for giving me the chance to say on the record that we totally respect the reasons Honda has given. In fairness, he will agree that I have made it clear that the sector is undergoing a big change, not least in technology, but I have to report to him and the House the countless conversations I have with virtually every firm in the automotive sector, large and small, all saying that the uncertainty is a negative factor in their investment decision making and that they want our future relationship to be without frictions, tariffs and rules of origin checks. That is sufficiently consistent that it is fair that I bring it to the attention of the House in a statement about the automotive sector.
Honda in Swindon — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Foreign Trade
Gregory David Clark (Conservative, Centre-right): There are indeed. The context of technological change is common to the motor industry around the world, but as I hope I have made clear, we have the opportunity to be a beneficiary of that change. We cannot be complacent about how competitive the sector is around the world, which means we must do everything we can to give confidence to investors, and that certainly involves agreeing a deal over the next few days that can unleash the optimism that comes from investment up and down the country—investment that I know in many instances is not taking place while people contemplate what our future trading relationship will be.
Making Tax Digital — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Macroeconomics
Nicky Morgan (Conservative, Centre-right): I think we can all agree that the digitisation of tax is to be welcomed, as is companies paying the correct amounts and the tax gap being reduced, but I want to pick up where the Financial Secretary left off and ask what happens for smaller companies if this goes wrong or if they make errors in their filings. The shadow Front Bencher is correct in the sense that many businesses and business organisations are very unconvinced by this roll-out. The Financial Secretary said in his statement that penalties will not be issued for late filing in the first year, only for late payments, but of course for many businesses it is all very well giving HMRC the money but getting it out of HMRC and getting HMRC to deal with queries can be very difficult. Does the Financial Secretary agree that overall a system of generous forbearance would be very welcome if he wants to continue with this system?
Making Tax Digital — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Macroeconomics
Melvyn John Stride (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank the hon. Lady for her various questions and will deal with them in turn. She referred to the matter of awareness and the 81% figure. We would expect that figure to rise through time quite strongly, not least because of our communications programme. We will be writing by the end of this month to the 1.2 million businesses and individuals in scope of this measure. We of course have our VAT helpline for where there are queries, and there is a huge amount of information available on gov.uk. The hon. Lady made a pertinent and perfectly reasonable point about how businesses and individuals will navigate their way around the various software suppliers and the 160 different products. First, all that information is available on gov.uk, and, secondly, we will shortly be releasing further information that will allow businesses to put in their requirements and then reduce that number of products to a subset that is particularly relevant to their needs The hon. Lady asked about the resources put into MTD compared with those put into our Brexit preparations. That of course probably begs several other questions as to what aspects of our preparation for Brexit she wishes to make for that particular comparison, and I would be very happy to discuss that with her in further detail after this statement.
Making Tax Digital — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Macroeconomics
Melvyn John Stride (Conservative, Centre-right): I am indeed familiar with the work of Roger Hargreaves. I am not sure whether there was a Mr Cautious or a Mr Sensible, but I think they would be more appropriate than Mr Tickle or Mr Silly. To answer the hon. Gentleman’s question, in terms of navigating around the various options, we are providing clear guidance that is very easy to follow, and 98% of those businesses and individuals that will be impacted are already filing their VAT returns digitally. Among the software products available, there is bridging software that allows companies to continue to make use of spreadsheets while using the software, some of which is free, to make their submission to HMRC.
Making Tax Digital — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Labor
Melvyn John Stride (Conservative, Centre-right): First, I should like to thank my hon. Friend for all the good work he does through the women and enterprise all-party parliamentary group to promote women in the world of work. This Government have of course presided over almost a record number of women being active in the workplace. I know that his all-party group will shortly produce a report on the point that he has raised, and I will look at that carefully to see whether something might be done. I shall remain mindful of the important point made by many others that we do not want to over-complicate or clutter up forms by seeking additional information, but I will look carefully at the recommendations he makes.
Making Tax Digital — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Agriculture
John Michael Howell (Conservative, Centre-right): One of the problems areas in my constituency is the farming industry, which seems to be having enormous problems with this. The Minister mentioned this in his statement, but can he tell me what is doing specifically to help the farming industry?
Making Tax Digital — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Agriculture
Melvyn John Stride (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend is right to say that I referred to the fact that specific software was available for those in the farming sector. There is also advice that is relevant to farming on gov.uk, but if there are any further specific points that he would like to raise with me in the context of his farmers, I would of course be happy to discuss them.
Making Tax Digital — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Macroeconomics
Melvyn John Stride (Conservative, Centre-right): I think the hon. Gentleman’s question relates almost exclusively to the HMRC transformation programme, as opposed to MTD, but perhaps with your indulgence, Mr Speaker, I can reply to his specific questions. What matters is that HMRC is ready and right for the 21st century, that its digital offering is sophisticated enough and that it has the skills resident in the centres that we have in order to run a 21st century tax system. He invited me to get out a bit more: I shall have great pleasure in visiting Bristol within the next fortnight to be part of the opening ceremony for the important office that we are bringing on stream in that part of the world.
Making Tax Digital — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Macroeconomics
David Anthony Evennett (Conservative, Centre-right): I welcome my right hon. Friend’s statement, and especially his determination to make it easier for individuals and businesses to get their tax right with MTD. I am also pleased that he will be sympathetic to small businesses, particularly initially, but will he confirm that the Government remain absolutely determined to tackle tax avoidance, tax evasion and non-compliance?
Making Tax Digital — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Technology
Melvyn John Stride (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank my hon. Friend for making that important point. We are encouraging businesses to engage with the software community, which has been part of our engagement more generally with stakeholders over a number of months. New software products are coming to the market all the time, and, as I have said, no fewer than 160 different products are already available.
Making Tax Digital — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Macroeconomics
Andrew John Stevenson (Conservative, Centre-right): I declare an interest as I am a member of a business that has submitted such tax returns. The digital system that we use has many advantages, is beneficial and creates efficiency within the business. I also completely agree with the Government’s desire to streamline the process, which is undoubtedly advantageous, and I agree with the Minister’s comments about there being no penalties However, I am aware of some businesses that are oblivious to the requirement and some that will struggle. May I gently suggest to the Minister that HMRC concentrates on larger businesses and gradually moves on to smaller businesses over time, giving smaller companies the maximum length of time to get themselves organised? Does he agree that the implementation period should be extended slightly if need be, but only for smaller businesses?
Making Tax Digital — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Macroeconomics
Melvyn John Stride (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend is absolutely right to observe that the smallest companies are, almost by definition, likely to find this change more onerous, and I will take his points on board. I certainly reassure him that HMRC will take a light-touch approach to penalties in all cases, particularly those involving small companies. Provided that individuals and businesses are not wilfully trying to avoid or change the amount of VAT that is due, we will take a proportionate and light-touch approach.
Making Tax Digital — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Technology
Julian Charles Sturdy (Conservative, Centre-right): I am reassured by the Minister’s comments about businesses that are unable to access suitable broadband provision. However, what conversations has he had with the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport about access to better broadband, so that the 5,000 businesses that will not be able to access MTD will be able to do so in the future?
Making Tax Digital — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Technology
Melvyn John Stride (Conservative, Centre-right): All Departments across Whitehall have regular contact with DCMS about broadband roll-out. Broadband is central to much of what the Treasury does, but it is of particular importance to MTD. We will continue to have those conversations.
Exiting the European Union (Structural and Investment Funds) — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: International Affairs
Richard Harrington (Conservative, Centre-right): I beg to move, That the draft European Structural and Investment Funds Common Provisions and Common Provision Rules etc. (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019, which were laid before this House on 28 January, be approved When debating statutory instruments, we normally say how honoured we are to serve before the Chair, whoever he or she may be. This is the first time I have debated a statutory instrument in the Chamber, so I do not know whether I should say it is an honour to do so before you, Mr Speaker. If you took it as read, you would be entitled to do so. [Interruption.] The Opposition Whips are chuntering from a sedentary position, and they do themselves no credit.
Exiting the European Union (Structural and Investment Funds) — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Macroeconomics
Kevin Paul Hollinrake (Conservative, Centre-right): I will refrain from asking my hon. Friend’s opinion on a no-deal. Structural funds are there primarily to try to rebalance our economy, through regional investment right across the UK. Whether we are in the EU or out, and whatever state we are in afterwards, does he agree that it is hugely important that we spend a greater proportion of our investment on infrastructure and other economic development in the regions, rather than in the capital?
Exiting the European Union (Structural and Investment Funds) — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Macroeconomics
John Alan Redwood (Conservative, Centre-right): Before the Minister moves on from the money, will he explain how the money would be calculated, and whether we would have to make a contribution to the administration costs or just to the actual costs of the programme?
Exiting the European Union (Structural and Investment Funds) — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: International Affairs
Richard Harrington (Conservative, Centre-right): If I may, Mr Speaker, I will use this opportunity to answer my right hon. Friend’s earlier question about the dispute resolution. Any disputes in relation to how funding is spent are dealt with through the audit and default functions and the provisions set out in the existing funding agreements. As for his second question, I will have to give the matter some thought, as I must confess I do not know the answer. If I do not think of it in the next half an hour or so, I will certainly write to him with the answer on that. My memory is quite good and usually things come back in due course, as I know they do to you, Mr Speaker I mentioned that the EU is making separate legal provision for us to continue to participate in the Peace and Interreg V-A programmes. That provision is intended to enable continued access to the programmes in the event of no deal, but it does not resolve the problem of payment powers, which is why we need both the EU regulation and this statutory instrument to safeguard those programmes and to ensure the continuation of their benefits. Not having this instrument in force by exit would also prevent the Government and our devolved Administrations from paying out the guarantee to UK partners of other territorial co-operation programmes, risking their financial viability.
Exiting the European Union (Structural and Investment Funds) — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: International Affairs
Richard Harrington (Conservative, Centre-right): I think I got away with that one, Mr Speaker, but I am not sure. [Interruption.] For now, Mr Speaker The House should note that this instrument is designed for a no-deal scenario. If there is a deal, the intention is to include a provision in the withdrawal agreement Bill to defer commencement of the regulations until the end of the implementation period. For that reason alone, I urge all right hon. and hon. Members to vote for the EU withdrawal agreement Bill. That deferment would mean that the regulations would come into force at that point, rather than on the date of exit In conclusion, in a no-deal scenario this instrument repeals redundant European law while ensuring that regional investment projects previously supported by the EU, including those supporting peace in Northern Ireland, are protected by the funding guarantee. For those reasons, I commend the regulations to the House.
Exiting the European Union (Structural and Investment Funds) — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Transportation
Kevin Paul Hollinrake (Conservative, Centre-right): Yes, but those figures are inaccurate. The contribution from central Government is pretty much on a par on a per capita basis. The difference comes when we add in local authority spending on transport infrastructure and private sector investment. It is about 3:1, which is still too great a differential, but it is important that we look at the figures in the round and factually, rather than at some of the headline figures.
Exiting the European Union (Structural and Investment Funds) — House of Commons, 2019-02-19
Topic: Agriculture
Simon Richard Clarke (Conservative, Centre-right): It is important to note that the Agriculture Bill provides for ensuring that environmental incentives are aligned with good practice in agricultural management. I think that hon. Members of all parties want that. It will be a welcome change from the way in which the CAP simply rewarded the largest farmers.