argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Public Order — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Civil Rights
Matthew James Offord (Conservative, Centre-right): We all agree there is injustice in the world, but does the Home Secretary agree with many of my constituents that images of demonstrators throwing bikes at police officers, aiming fireworks at horses, and racially abusing other people, are simply unacceptable? The irony is that public sector workers have recently been applauded, yet now those same people are being put at risk of physical harm through both violence and a pandemic. Will she take every possible step, including with the co-operation and agreement of the Mayor of London, to prevent any further demonstrations during the period of pandemic?
Public Order — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Other
Eleanor Fulton Laing (Conservative, Centre-right): The House is grateful to the Home Secretary for taking the trouble to answer in great detail all the questions that have so far have been asked, but now that quite a few questions have been asked, we will have to speed up a bit, to try to get everyone in. I make no criticism—these are sensitive matters and need to be dealt with in full—but perhaps now we can go rather faster.
Public Order — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Civil Rights
Priti Sushil Patel (Conservative, Centre-right): I would make a number of points to the hon. Lady. I have been very clear in my remarks about the level of injustice that is felt across the country, and that has been illustrated in what we have seen over the weekend and the very peaceful protests that have taken place, but I am really saddened that she has effectively said that this Government do not understand racial inequality. [Interruption.] On that basis, it must have been a very different Home Secretary who as a child was frequently called a Paki in the playground; a very different Home Secretary who was racially abused in the streets or even advised to drop her surname and use her husband’s in order to advance her career; and a different Home Secretary who was recently characterised in The Guardian—if I may say so, Madam Deputy Speaker—as a fat cow with a ring through its nose, something that was not only racist but offensive, both culturally and religiously. This is hardly an example of respect, equality, tolerance or fairness, so when it comes to racism, sexism, tolerance or social justice, I will not take lectures from the those other side of the House I have already said repeatedly that there is no place for racism in our country or in society and, sadly, too many people are too willing to casually dismiss the contributions of those who do not necessarily conform to preconceived views or ideas about how ethnic minorities should behave or think. This in my view is racist in itself. As I said earlier, both in my statement and in my answers to other colleagues in the House, to combat the real inequalities in society and to end the gross disservice to many communities across our nation who are subject to real and pressing inequalities, we must address these sensitive issues in an accurate and responsible way and by addressing prejudice rather than inciting and inflaming tensions.
Public Order — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Civil Rights
Priti Sushil Patel (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend is absolutely right, and those people should be in no doubt whatever that swift justice will follow, and that is exactly what the British public want to see. They want to see the rule of law applied, but also for people to express their views in a peaceful way that is in line with the democratic values of our country.
Public Order — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Civil Rights
Priti Sushil Patel (Conservative, Centre-right): I say to the hon. Gentleman, first, that he is speaking to a Home Secretary who is from the BAME community, so there is no withholding of the data or information that he is referring to. The Government have been fully committed, and the Equalities Minister is working to not just look at the data but, importantly, work across Government—I think the House needs to fully recognise this—through all Government Departments from a policy perspective to understand the causes, whether they are health issues or housing issues, and the range of issues that basically dominate many inequalities. It is important that the Government have the time and space to do that, to actually deliver the right solutions to provide the right levels of social justice.
Public Order — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Immigration
Martin John Vickers (Conservative, Centre-right): Fortunately, my constituency has had a low infection rate from covid, but in recent weeks people have been anxious about an influx of visitors to the resort. You can imagine, Home Secretary, that they are doubly anxious this coming week—
Public Order — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Other
Eleanor Fulton Laing (Conservative, Centre-right): Order. I am trying not to interrupt people, because we do not have much time, but we must adhere to the standards of this place. The hon. Gentleman knows—a previous hon. Gentleman got this wrong too—that you cannot address the Home Secretary as "Home Secretary"; you must address the Chair. There are still new Members who do not quite know how to do this. There are good reasons for it that we do not have time to go into now, but the hon. Gentleman must address the Chair.
Public Order — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Civil Rights
Martin John Vickers (Conservative, Centre-right): My apologies, Madam Deputy Speaker My right hon. Friend will be aware that my residents are doubly anxious because a Black Lives Matters protest meeting is planned for this Saturday. Could she assure my constituents that not only will property and people be defended but social distancing will be enforced to maintain the low infection rate?
Public Order — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Mixed Topics
Priti Sushil Patel (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend makes a very important point. I reiterate the point I made earlier: we have asked protest organisers to engage with the police. That way, anybody who wishes to express their views or opinions in the right way—in a socially distanced and legitimate way—can do so. We do not want the type of scenes we saw at the weekend, with mass protests and crowds of more than six people coming together and obviously not social distancing. We are in the midst of a pandemic and it is right that we all behave responsibly and communicate the message across all our communities that social distancing matters and can and will save lives and importantly that we continue to control this virus at this very delicate time.
Public Order — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Civil Rights
Fay Alicia Jones (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend the Member for East Surrey (Claire Coutinho) quoted Martin Luther King on social media this morning when she said: "in spite of temporary victories, violence never brings permanent peace" Does my right hon. Friend agree that the violence over the weekend undermines the essential message of Black Lives Matters, which must be heard?
Public Order — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Civil Rights
Priti Sushil Patel (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend is absolutely right. I have made the point repeatedly that the violence dominated what was for the majority a peaceful protest and subverted its very clear message. People were making their voices heard and articulating the injustices they see. There is no place for violence and it should not be tolerated.
Public Order — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Civil Rights
Priti Sushil Patel (Conservative, Centre-right): These protests are about injustice. What we have seen in America is dreadful—it is absolutely awful to see America tear itself apart—but, as I have said repeatedly, we can come together to address issues across all BAME communities and to address inequalities, the issue of young people’s life chances and the fact that they want more hope and opportunity. That is the type of leadership that the United Kingdom can show.
Public Order — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Public Lands
Jonathan Edward Gullis (Conservative, Centre-right): Residents in Stoke-on-Trent, Kidsgrove and Talke were rightly outraged when they saw the Cenotaph graffitied and attempts to burn our Union Jack, desecrating the memories of those who paid the ultimate sacrifice for the freedoms we have today. Will my right hon. Friend back me in supporting Lewis Feilder and Conservative Friends of the Armed Forces by introducing a desecration of war memorials Bill to enable our police and courts to more easily prosecute those who damage our sacred memorials?
Public Order — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Other
Eleanor Fulton Laing (Conservative, Centre-right): I must implore Members: a lot of people have bothered to come here this afternoon and they are not all going to get to ask a question because most Members have not asked questions but have made statements and told stories. From now on we will have to have short questions, and that means one question. The Home Secretary will then be able to give short answers to single questions.
Public Order — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Civil Rights
Robert Alexander Courts (Conservative, Centre-right): I will very much try to do that, Madam Deputy Speaker We are lucky to live in this country under the protection of the rule of law, not least because of the actions of Winston Churchill, who defended the rule of law and defended this country against industrialised racism. Does the Home Secretary agree that under the rule of law, violence and vandalism have no place?
Public Order — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Mixed Topics
Priti Sushil Patel (Conservative, Centre-right): The right hon. Lady is right that we should absolutely reflect on the majority who have protested peacefully, and I commend the young people in particular. Online protests are much safer when it comes to the health epidemic that we are enduring right now. Importantly, the voices of those who protested peacefully have in effect been subverted through the violence that we saw this weekend.
Public Order — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Civil Rights
Gareth Andrew Bacon (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank my right hon. Friend for reassuring the country that the individuals who desecrated the Cenotaph, Winston Churchill’s statue and the statue of Abraham Lincoln will be held to account. Does she agree that vandalising monuments to the heroes who defeated fascism, defended our freedoms and ended slavery in the United States does absolutely nothing to further the cause of equality?
Public Order — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Civil Rights
Priti Sushil Patel (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Lady is right to point to peaceful protests, which are a vital part of a democratic society, and she asks about the removal of statues of particular individuals. She will know that there are democratic processes that should be followed and respected by everybody to bring about that change, including working with councils of all colours across the country—Labour, Conservative and Lib Dem councils—with due process followed. That is absolutely the right approach to take, including following the rule of law.
Public Order — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Public Lands
Priti Sushil Patel (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Lady will be well aware—perhaps she would like to lobby local authorities across the country to bring about the changes to statues. I notice that she celebrated the violence and criminal scenes that we saw across the weekend. I thought that the politics of protest and placards had left the Labour party with the departure of the right hon. Member for Islington North (Jeremy Corbyn).
Public Order — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Civil Rights
Priti Sushil Patel (Conservative, Centre-right): I hope that the hon. Lady will join me in lobbying councils across the country where Labour has been in charge for many years to bring about the change that black, Asian and minority ethnic people would like to see.
Public Order — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Civil Rights
Laura Trott (Conservative, Centre-right): Does my right hon. Friend agree that we must not let the violence of a minority this weekend overshadow the majority who were peacefully protesting, and that we must bring forward practical steps to address the remaining racial inequality in our society?
Public Order — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Civil Rights
Jerome Patrick Burke Mayhew (Conservative, Centre-right): It is the dehumanising of the other that makes it okay to violently attack a stranger, whether that stranger be black or white. Does my right hon. Friend agree that we should listen to the peaceful voices of the BAME communities, celebrate our civilian unarmed police who look after us all, and celebrate our common humanity?
Public Order — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Public Lands
Laura Rose Farris (Conservative, Centre-right): My right hon. Friend has quite properly said that residents should lobby local authorities to raise principled objections to offensive statues, but Bristolians have lamented the inconsistent response of their local authority. Will my right hon. Friend consider publishing guidance not to determine outcomes but to create uniform principles, so that law-abiding citizens who object to statues can feel sure that their complaints are heard?
Public Order — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Civil Rights
Priti Sushil Patel (Conservative, Centre-right): Peaceful protest remains a vital part of our democratic society, as the hon. Lady has said, but what we witnessed over the weekend was terrible. We talk about community spirit and communities coming together when it comes to understanding the strength of feeling and people expressing their views in the right kind of way. I have already spoken about the United States of America, and what we are seeing over there is a tragedy.
Public Order — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Other
Eleanor Fulton Laing (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank the hon. Members who took part in the second half of that statement for being swift. We were therefore able, in just over an hour, to allow everybody who wanted to participate to do so. That is a fair and decent way of doing things In order to allow the safe exit of hon. Members participating in this item of business and the safe arrival of those participating in the next, I am now suspending the House for five minutes Virtual participation in proceedings concluded (Order, 4 June).
House Business during the Pandemic — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Other
Karl McCartney (Conservative, Centre-right): I do not disagree with the right hon. Gentleman that the sight of us all walking through here to vote was slightly ridiculous. Is he aware that screens were previously erected in the Lobbies, but they were removed before we returned last week? Does he think that that was because there are no TV cameras in the Lobbies?
House Business during the Pandemic — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Other
Jonathan Edward Gullis (Conservative, Centre-right): The right hon. Gentleman says that we work beyond this House, which obviously we do, but does he recognise that the work in this House is extremely important in looking at what the Government are doing, and that being physically in this building will help us in exchanging words about that, as we are doing now?
House Business during the Pandemic — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Other
Eleanor Fulton Laing (Conservative, Centre-right): Before I call the Leader of the House, I should warn Members who are planning to speak, lest they might have prepared long orations, that this debate will last for only two hours in total and therefore there will be a time limit on Back-Bench speeches of five minutes, which may well reduce later in the day.
House Business during the Pandemic — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Mixed Topics
Jacob William Rees-Mogg (Conservative, Centre-right): I listened with great interest to the right hon. Member for Orkney and Shetland (Mr Carmichael), who is a distinguished Member of this House and former holder of office in the coalition Government. It is, of course, clear that there are still some concerns about the return to physical proceedings, and I am sympathetic to them; we are all trying to do our best to do right by our constituents at this difficult time. I pay tribute to the work of all those across the House who have persevered despite the limitations of lockdown to help individuals and businesses in their constituencies. The right hon. Gentleman rightly said that Members of Parliament have been exceptionally busy in their constituencies, with a workload that for many has been higher than they have been expecting in ordinary time, but this is not an ordinary time.
House Business during the Pandemic — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Mixed Topics
Jacob William Rees-Mogg (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend is absolutely right on that, which is one reason why I argue that we should try to lead by example. People who have been at the frontline have been working exceptionally hard and have been doing so in a way that is brave and deserves our commendation.
House Business during the Pandemic — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Other
Jacob William Rees-Mogg (Conservative, Centre-right): Snails do not go anything like as fast as we went in that queue, and I really do not think Members should be too smart to feel that they cannot queue when our constituents are. I think we have to recognise that.
House Business during the Pandemic — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Other
Jacob William Rees-Mogg (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend makes a good point. There is a great deal going on in the world and, thanks to the right hon. Member for Orkney and Shetland, we are debating ourselves—a subject that is of course of great interest to us.
House Business during the Pandemic — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Other
Jacob William Rees-Mogg (Conservative, Centre-right): I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman, who is an assiduous attender of Parliament and very thoughtful in his contributions. Where I disagree with him is in my understanding of what a Parliament is. Parliament is a coming together from across the nation to one place; therefore, we cannot carry out our role as parliamentarians properly and fully when we are absent.
House Business during the Pandemic — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Other
Alexander Paul Thomas Stafford (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank my right hon. Friend for giving way to an intervention—something that could not be done in the virtual Parliament, thereby disenfranchising the people of Rother Valley. I therefore thank him for allowing me to participate fully in Parliament once more.
House Business during the Pandemic — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Other
Jacob William Rees-Mogg (Conservative, Centre-right): I have a great deal of sympathy with that view, but the right hon. Member for Orkney and Shetland called for this debate and was successful in his application, therefore clearly Parliament has a desire to talk about itself. That was not my choice, but I am here to participate and to do so fully, in a real and physical Parliament.
House Business during the Pandemic — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Civil Rights
Jacob William Rees-Mogg (Conservative, Centre-right): I am not sure that that point was worth waiting for. [Laughter.] I do not wish to be unkind—it is a matter for debate, perhaps on another occasion, as to whether it was worth waiting for or not. The motion last week that was tabled in my name allowed those who are shielding to vote by proxy, which meets the majority of the hon. Gentleman’s concerns.
House Business during the Pandemic — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Other
Jacob William Rees-Mogg (Conservative, Centre-right): It is a very good point, and a fair point for the hon. Gentleman to make, but you will see, Madam—Mr Deputy Speaker. A sort of transformation has taken place. Even without haircuts, Mr Deputy Speaker’s hairstyle is not as lustrous as Madam Deputy Speaker’s, and it is a different colour, as the right hon. Member for Walsall South (Valerie Vaz) helpfully points out However, look at what has been happening in this debate—this is happening as a debate. Questions are coming in at all angles, testing the Government’s view. Why? Because we are here physically. I am not closed minded as Leader of the House. If it could work, with people who are shielded and cannot be here zooming in and making interventions, I would not seek to stop that out of stubbornness, but I do not yet see how it is possible to make a debate like this, with a vibrant exchange of views. I have not counted how many interventions I have taken, but how would this debate have flowed? How could we have got the exchange of opinion with people randomly popping up? How would they have come in? Would there have been a tower of Babel as they shouted over each other? Would they have to be on mute or off mute, and how would we know when they came on? Would a list have to be prepared in advance? Would someone have to apply to Mr Speaker in advance to get on the list to intervene on what I was going to say before they knew what I was going to say? It is really difficult to make a debate work with virtual interventions.
House Business during the Pandemic — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Mixed Topics
Andrew Griffith (Conservative, Centre-right): Does my right hon. Friend share my frustration and that of my constituents that at a time when the Government are making unprecedented interventions in our liberty, when our economy is in real crisis and potentially bleeding out every day, and when some of our citizens are still struggling to get the healthcare that they need, the danger is that this House looks, with the greatest respect, a little bit self-indulgent in that we are once again this evening debating the conduct of our own affairs and not devoting this time to the affairs of those we are sent here to represent?
House Business during the Pandemic — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Other
Jonathan Edward Gullis (Conservative, Centre-right): I do not pretend to be a historian like my right hon. Friend, but I am sure that during the blitz of 1940, Parliament would sit in the morning, obviously not at a time specified in the press so that it could avoid being attacked. So in this fight with coronavirus, is it not right that we come and sit in this House and do our duty?
House Business during the Pandemic — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Mixed Topics
Jacob William Rees-Mogg (Conservative, Centre-right): The right hon. Gentleman makes a point with which I have a great deal of sympathy. I would remind hon. and right hon. Members that the formal advice from the Government is that those who are living with people who are shielding do not themselves need to shield, but I understand why many people who are living with people who have to shield want to shield as well for the safety of the member of their family. As I said to the hon. Member for Rhondda, I am listening very carefully to that point.
House Business during the Pandemic — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Other
Jacob William Rees-Mogg (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Gentleman has now made two interventions, so I wonder why he is suddenly so concerned about other people’s interventions. I can see that we should perhaps have a Standing Order to say that he may intervene but no other hon. or right hon. Members may do so.
House Business during the Pandemic — House of Commons, 2020-06-08
Topic: Other
Jacob William Rees-Mogg (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Lady complains that I have been speaking for 30 minutes. I have a very happy memory from shortly after I was elected to the House when she managed to speak for well over an hour, so I go back to the point I made to her earlier about pots and kettles.