argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Devolved Administrations — House of Commons, 2018-12-06
Topic: International Affairs
Stephen Paul Barclay (Conservative, Centre-right): It is not just what you say, but what you do that matters. My very first meeting as Secretary of State was with the Scottish and Welsh Governments, and I hope that underlines my personal commitment to that dialogue. As the Prime Minister committed on Tuesday, we will continue to engage with the devolved Administrations on the detailed positions on the future relationship.
Devolved Administrations — House of Commons, 2018-12-06
Topic: International Affairs
Stephen Paul Barclay (Conservative, Centre-right): I seem to recall that the democratic will of the people of Scotland was to remain within the United Kingdom. Having taken that correct decision, they will be the first to recognise that the referendum was a UK decision.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2018-12-06
Topic: International Affairs
Stephen Paul Barclay (Conservative, Centre-right): Eleven days ago, the Government published the EU withdrawal agreement and the political declaration on the future relationship between the UK and the EU. We have achieved a deal with the EU that delivers on the referendum, that the nation can unite behind and that Parliament should back.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2018-12-06
Topic: Foreign Trade
Priti Sushil Patel (Conservative, Centre-right): I welcome the Secretary of State to his new role on the Front Bench. Will he explain or elaborate on the work he is doing across Government to enhance connectivity post Brexit for international trade across the county of Essex and in our regions to get the economic growth that is required and to expand our ports and airports to ensure that our trade not only flows but increases when we leave the EU?
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2018-12-06
Topic: International Affairs
Stephen Paul Barclay (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank the right hon. and learned Member for his generous welcome. I also take the opportunity, as I did on Monday night—although technically it was Tuesday morning—to pay tribute to him for serving as shadow Secretary of State throughout this period. On the core of his question about the UK’s ability to exit from the backstop, he will know, as a former lawyer, that the legal process is clear in terms of the role of the Joint Committee and the arbitration, and that there is legal wiring in the withdrawal agreement that requires the EU to act in good faith. Those issues were explored in much more detail with the Attorney General on Monday, but in short I very much agree with the Prime Minister because there is a legal connectivity between the withdrawal agreement and the backstop arrangement.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2018-12-06
Topic: International Affairs
Stephen Paul Barclay (Conservative, Centre-right): The right hon. and learned Gentleman makes the same point in essence as my very distinguished predecessor, my right hon. Friend the Member for Esher and Walton (Dominic Raab), about where the balance of risk sits. The right hon. and learned Gentleman quoted the Attorney General, so it is worth drawing the House’s attention to exactly what the Attorney General said on that point. [Interruption.] Well, he quoted part of what the Attorney General said, but my right hon. and learned Friend said more than what has been quoted in isolation, and the right hon. and learned Gentleman will be the first to accept that when considering these issues, one looks at the whole, not selective comments. The Attorney General said: "I do not believe that we are likely to be entrapped in the backstop permanently".—[Official Report, 3 December 2018; Vol. 650; c. 552.] However, he also said that "the matters of law affecting the withdrawal can only inform what is essentially a political decision".—[Official Report, 3 December 2018; Vol. 650, c. 546.] It is a question of where one assesses the balance of risk to be. I looked at that very issue when I considered the matter. The Attorney General has addressed that, as is reflected in his comments to the House on Monday.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2018-12-06
Topic: International Affairs
Questions: Will my parliamentary neighbour, the Minister for no deal, confirm for the benefit of our constituents in Northamptonshire that the Government have advanced plans in place to ensure a smooth Brexit in the event of no deal?
Christopher Heaton-Harris (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank my hon. Friend and parliamentary neighbour for his question. I know how hard he works in his constituency, and he always puts me to shame with the amount of work he does for his constituents I remind my hon. Friend of the answers he has heard on this so far, before giving him some extra bits. We already have over 300 plans that we are delivering to ensure that, should we be in a no deal scenario, it goes smoothly. We have plans for our border, and he will have heard about the amount of legislation, primary and secondary, that is going through the House, and I have some specific examples On 2 November. Canada signed a nuclear co-operation agreement with the UK. Later in November, the Competition and Markets Authority started its recruitment campaign to hire staff to fulfil the obligations of its new state aid role. We have begun a pet travel awareness campaign to advise pet owners of the actions they would need to take to be able to travel to the EU with their pets from March 2019. The Home Office has recruited 300 people to its readiness taskforce, and it was on track to be deployed in November. I could go on.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2018-12-06
Topic: International Affairs
Questions: Will my parliamentary neighbour, the Minister for no deal, confirm for the benefit of our constituents in Northamptonshire that the Government have advanced plans in place to ensure a smooth Brexit in the event of no deal?; The German owner of the Barden factory in Plymouth has announced that the precision ball bearing plant and 400 jobs will go, and it blames Brexit for the closure. Will the Secretary of State join me and Plymouth’s Conservative MPs in encouraging Barden’s German owner, Schaeffler, to change its mind and keep this profitable plant open?; The majority of my constituents and I voted to leave the EU primarily to take back control of our sovereignty, and I am struggling to reconcile that with the proposed Northern Ireland backstop and our inability to leave it unilaterally. What reassurances can my right hon. Friend give me following the publication of the Government’s legal advice yesterday?
Stephen Paul Barclay (Conservative, Centre-right): I am very happy to reassure my hon. Friend. A number of the safeguards have been debated at some length in the House, including safeguards on extending the implementation period, on the undesirability of the backstop to the EU27 and on the due legal process. Given the commitments in the withdrawal agreement, the due process that applies, in terms of the joint committee and the arbitration, would follow. There are clear safeguards in the text that the Prime Minister has negotiated as part of the wider achievements that have been secured in delivering on the referendum. There is an independent coastal approach, and we are coming out of the common fisheries policy and having a skills-based immigration system.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2018-12-06
Topic: Macroeconomics
Questions: Will my parliamentary neighbour, the Minister for no deal, confirm for the benefit of our constituents in Northamptonshire that the Government have advanced plans in place to ensure a smooth Brexit in the event of no deal?; The German owner of the Barden factory in Plymouth has announced that the precision ball bearing plant and 400 jobs will go, and it blames Brexit for the closure. Will the Secretary of State join me and Plymouth’s Conservative MPs in encouraging Barden’s German owner, Schaeffler, to change its mind and keep this profitable plant open?; The majority of my constituents and I voted to leave the EU primarily to take back control of our sovereignty, and I am struggling to reconcile that with the proposed Northern Ireland backstop and our inability to leave it unilaterally. What reassurances can my right hon. Friend give me following the publication of the Government’s legal advice yesterday?; I welcome the Secretary of State to his post. The North East England chamber of commerce is briefing that, because this deal fails to nail down certainty, it threatens investment and jobs, and businesses in the north-east do not support it. Why is he asking this House to support a deal that will threaten my constituents’ jobs?
Stephen Paul Barclay (Conservative, Centre-right): If there is an outlier to which the hon. Gentleman refers—I always enjoyed our dealings in my previous ministerial role, given his health expertise—the overwhelming feedback we have received from business is its support for the deal and its desire to see the implementation period. Business does not want the uncertainty of crashing out, but it also does not want the uncertainty of a second referendum.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2018-12-06
Topic: International Affairs
Questions: Will my parliamentary neighbour, the Minister for no deal, confirm for the benefit of our constituents in Northamptonshire that the Government have advanced plans in place to ensure a smooth Brexit in the event of no deal?; The German owner of the Barden factory in Plymouth has announced that the precision ball bearing plant and 400 jobs will go, and it blames Brexit for the closure. Will the Secretary of State join me and Plymouth’s Conservative MPs in encouraging Barden’s German owner, Schaeffler, to change its mind and keep this profitable plant open?; The majority of my constituents and I voted to leave the EU primarily to take back control of our sovereignty, and I am struggling to reconcile that with the proposed Northern Ireland backstop and our inability to leave it unilaterally. What reassurances can my right hon. Friend give me following the publication of the Government’s legal advice yesterday?; I welcome the Secretary of State to his post. The North East England chamber of commerce is briefing that, because this deal fails to nail down certainty, it threatens investment and jobs, and businesses in the north-east do not support it. Why is he asking this House to support a deal that will threaten my constituents’ jobs?; The legal position of legislation passed by this House is that we will be leaving the EU on 29 March 2019, deal or no-deal. The events of this week, and I suspect next week, make a no deal outcome more likely, so will the Secretary of State ensure that all Government Departments now make ready and prioritise their preparedness for no deal? Does he agree that for the Government not to do that would be a dereliction of duty?
Stephen Paul Barclay (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend will appreciate that a key focus for me since taking on this role has been to review the work on the state of readiness and to ensure that those discussions are held with Cabinet colleagues. That is exactly what I am doing, and it is supported by the excellent work of the Under-Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, my hon. Friend the Member for Daventry (Chris Heaton-Harris).
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2018-12-06
Topic: International Affairs
Questions: Will my parliamentary neighbour, the Minister for no deal, confirm for the benefit of our constituents in Northamptonshire that the Government have advanced plans in place to ensure a smooth Brexit in the event of no deal?; The German owner of the Barden factory in Plymouth has announced that the precision ball bearing plant and 400 jobs will go, and it blames Brexit for the closure. Will the Secretary of State join me and Plymouth’s Conservative MPs in encouraging Barden’s German owner, Schaeffler, to change its mind and keep this profitable plant open?; The majority of my constituents and I voted to leave the EU primarily to take back control of our sovereignty, and I am struggling to reconcile that with the proposed Northern Ireland backstop and our inability to leave it unilaterally. What reassurances can my right hon. Friend give me following the publication of the Government’s legal advice yesterday?; I welcome the Secretary of State to his post. The North East England chamber of commerce is briefing that, because this deal fails to nail down certainty, it threatens investment and jobs, and businesses in the north-east do not support it. Why is he asking this House to support a deal that will threaten my constituents’ jobs?; The legal position of legislation passed by this House is that we will be leaving the EU on 29 March 2019, deal or no-deal. The events of this week, and I suspect next week, make a no deal outcome more likely, so will the Secretary of State ensure that all Government Departments now make ready and prioritise their preparedness for no deal? Does he agree that for the Government not to do that would be a dereliction of duty?; As the Secretary of State for stockpiling, can he explain to me how he will maintain a supply of the medical radioisotope technetium, given that its precursor has a half-life of less than three days?
Stephen Paul Barclay (Conservative, Centre-right): I very much hear the point that my hon. Friend makes. As I am sure he is aware, I am meeting colleagues and listening to concerns, including those on the backstop. Obviously, we also need to be mindful of the imperative of the guarantee that we have given to the people of Northern Ireland, which was given for a reason, in terms of the peace process and ensuring that we honour the obligations that have been given to the people of Northern Ireland.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2018-12-06
Topic: International Affairs
Questions: Will my parliamentary neighbour, the Minister for no deal, confirm for the benefit of our constituents in Northamptonshire that the Government have advanced plans in place to ensure a smooth Brexit in the event of no deal?; The German owner of the Barden factory in Plymouth has announced that the precision ball bearing plant and 400 jobs will go, and it blames Brexit for the closure. Will the Secretary of State join me and Plymouth’s Conservative MPs in encouraging Barden’s German owner, Schaeffler, to change its mind and keep this profitable plant open?; The majority of my constituents and I voted to leave the EU primarily to take back control of our sovereignty, and I am struggling to reconcile that with the proposed Northern Ireland backstop and our inability to leave it unilaterally. What reassurances can my right hon. Friend give me following the publication of the Government’s legal advice yesterday?; I welcome the Secretary of State to his post. The North East England chamber of commerce is briefing that, because this deal fails to nail down certainty, it threatens investment and jobs, and businesses in the north-east do not support it. Why is he asking this House to support a deal that will threaten my constituents’ jobs?; The legal position of legislation passed by this House is that we will be leaving the EU on 29 March 2019, deal or no-deal. The events of this week, and I suspect next week, make a no deal outcome more likely, so will the Secretary of State ensure that all Government Departments now make ready and prioritise their preparedness for no deal? Does he agree that for the Government not to do that would be a dereliction of duty?; As the Secretary of State for stockpiling, can he explain to me how he will maintain a supply of the medical radioisotope technetium, given that its precursor has a half-life of less than three days?; On Tuesday, the National Assembly for Wales voted overwhelmingly for a Plaid Cymru motion to reject the British Government’s deal. What notice will the Secretary of State take of this new, emphatic and democratic decision?
Robin Caspar Walker (Conservative, Centre-right): We always pay attention to what the devolved Assemblies and devolved legislatures do. We, of course, take note of its decision, but it was a UK referendum that decided we should leave the UK, and Wales also voted to leave.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2018-12-06
Topic: Foreign Trade
Questions: Will my parliamentary neighbour, the Minister for no deal, confirm for the benefit of our constituents in Northamptonshire that the Government have advanced plans in place to ensure a smooth Brexit in the event of no deal?; The German owner of the Barden factory in Plymouth has announced that the precision ball bearing plant and 400 jobs will go, and it blames Brexit for the closure. Will the Secretary of State join me and Plymouth’s Conservative MPs in encouraging Barden’s German owner, Schaeffler, to change its mind and keep this profitable plant open?; The majority of my constituents and I voted to leave the EU primarily to take back control of our sovereignty, and I am struggling to reconcile that with the proposed Northern Ireland backstop and our inability to leave it unilaterally. What reassurances can my right hon. Friend give me following the publication of the Government’s legal advice yesterday?; I welcome the Secretary of State to his post. The North East England chamber of commerce is briefing that, because this deal fails to nail down certainty, it threatens investment and jobs, and businesses in the north-east do not support it. Why is he asking this House to support a deal that will threaten my constituents’ jobs?; The legal position of legislation passed by this House is that we will be leaving the EU on 29 March 2019, deal or no-deal. The events of this week, and I suspect next week, make a no deal outcome more likely, so will the Secretary of State ensure that all Government Departments now make ready and prioritise their preparedness for no deal? Does he agree that for the Government not to do that would be a dereliction of duty?; As the Secretary of State for stockpiling, can he explain to me how he will maintain a supply of the medical radioisotope technetium, given that its precursor has a half-life of less than three days?; On Tuesday, the National Assembly for Wales voted overwhelmingly for a Plaid Cymru motion to reject the British Government’s deal. What notice will the Secretary of State take of this new, emphatic and democratic decision?
Stephen Paul Barclay (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Lady usually speaks on business matters with great experience, but it is a misreading of the economic analysis to suggest that her constituents will be poorer or less well-off. The issue within the economic analysis is what the impact will be on the rate of growth; it is not whether people will be worse off than they are today. One key achievement of the Prime Minister’s deal is that it keeps open the option of frictionless trade, because it moves from the binary choice that was initially offered, of either a Canada-style or Norway-style deal, and recognises a bespoke option.
Members’ Interests — House of Commons, 2018-12-06
Topic: Government Operations
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (Conservative, Centre-right): On a point of order, Mr Speaker. You will be aware that the Committee on Standards has today published a report on nine payments, mainly unexpected foreign royalties, which I am very sorry to say were recorded late on the Register of Members’ Financial Interests. I fully accept that the delay was a breach of the House’s rules and, though I am grateful to the Committee for recognising that there was no intention to mislead the House and that I have been completely transparent, I therefore offer the House a full and unreserved apology.
European Union (Withdrawal) Act — House of Commons, 2018-12-06
Topic: International Affairs
Philip Hammond (Conservative, Centre-right): Thank you, Mr Speaker. I welcome the opportunity to take part in this debate today and to make the case to the House for backing the Prime Minister’s Brexit deal, ensuring a smooth and orderly departure from the European Union, delivering on the referendum decision of the British people and, at the same time, securing a close economic and security partnership with our nearest neighbours and most important trading partners. I will also make the case for rejecting the calls from those who would prefer to plunge the country into the uncertainty and economic self-harm of no deal and from those who would seek to undo the referendum decision and, in doing so, fuel a narrative of betrayal that would undermine the broad consent on which our democratic politics is based.
European Union (Withdrawal) Act — House of Commons, 2018-12-06
Topic: International Affairs
Philip Hammond (Conservative, Centre-right): I have always recognised that leaving the EU will have an economic cost, but the deal that the Prime Minister has negotiated minimises that cost. Our nation is divided on the issue, and I fundamentally believe that we have to bring the country back together in order to succeed in the future. This deal offers a sensible compromise that protects our economy but delivers on the decision of the British people in the referendum. My judgment is that, if we want to maximise the chances of our nation being successful in the future, this is the right way to go.
European Union (Withdrawal) Act — House of Commons, 2018-12-06
Topic: International Affairs
Philip Hammond (Conservative, Centre-right): Yes. As I have said in this House many times, at the beginning of the process, there were people inside the European Union who were contemplating a punishment deal for the United Kingdom—a deal designed to punish us for having the audacity to decide to leave the EU. Clearly, we could not have accepted such terms for our departure.
European Union (Withdrawal) Act — House of Commons, 2018-12-06
Topic: Foreign Trade
Nadine Vanessa Dorries (Conservative, Centre-right): The Chancellor mentioned no deal, so I wonder whether he can explain what no deal means. My understanding is that the rest of the world trades under World Trade Organisation rules with independent free trade agreements, so there is actually no such thing as no deal, is there? If we do leave—I do not buy the term "crash out"—we will trade on WTO rules, so that does not mean "no deal", does it?
European Union (Withdrawal) Act — House of Commons, 2018-12-06
Topic: International Affairs
Philip Hammond (Conservative, Centre-right): It depends very much on what those rules are. Rules on the goods acquis, the part of EU regulation that deals with goods, are very stable and have been for many years. We know that our manufacturers in this country will continue to follow EU rules on goods, whether we choose to adopt those rules or not, so I think that the economic price of having such rules would be very small. In other areas, such as financial services, where rules are changing rapidly and where there is a great dynamism in the system, there could be much greater dangers for us in being locked into following rules over which we have no influence. That is why the deal we are putting before the House proposes a very different way forward for goods than for services, and particularly financial services I have observed this process at close quarters for two and a half years, and I am absolutely clear about one thing: this deal is the best deal to exit the EU that is available or that is going to be available. The idea that there is an option of renegotiating at the eleventh hour is simply a delusion. We need to be honest with ourselves that the alternatives to this deal are no deal or no Brexit. Either would leave us a fractured society and a divided nation Only the compromise of this negotiated deal—delivering on the referendum result by leaving the EU, ending the free movement of people and reasserting our sovereign control over our laws, while at the same time maintaining the closest possible trade, security and cultural links with the European Union to protect our jobs, our living standards and our values—can allow our country to move on. Only that compromise can bring us back together after Brexit is delivered, and we should remember the lesson of history that divided nations are not successful nations.