argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Support for Ukraine’s Military — House of Commons, 2022-06-13
Topic: Defense
Stuart Campbell McDonald (Scottish National Party, Centre-left): We fully support all the Government’s efforts to properly arm the Ukrainians with the equipment and weapons they need, but the Secretary of State has alluded a couple of times to the fact that there is also the corresponding challenge of training. Will he say a little more about his discussions with colleagues and allies about maximising opportunities for Ukrainian personnel to be able to use the equipment and armoury that most suits their needs?
ISIL (Iraq) — House of Commons, 2015-06-08
Topic: Defense
Michael Fallon (Conservative, Centre-right): The number involved, as I told the House, is about 275, but it will vary as the training forces begin and end service. The significance of the announcement at the weekend is that we will—[Interruption.] Two hundred and seventy five is the number that I have given the House. The significance of the announcement at the weekend is that some of those trainers will train at the building partner capacity bases outside the Kurdish areas.
Reserve Forces (Recruitment) — House of Commons, 2015-06-08
Topic: Defense
Julian William Hendy Brazier (Conservative, Centre-right): Six thousand eight hundred and ten personnel joined the reserves in financial year 2014-15, a rise of 65% on the previous financial year. For 2012-13, the only statistics available are for the Army reserve, with 3,960 joining that year. We have made significant improvements to the recruiting process, the offer to reservists and the support we give to employers. We continue to look at further improvements to build on this considerable growth.
Reserve Forces (Recruitment) — House of Commons, 2015-06-08
Topic: Defense
Julian William Hendy Brazier (Conservative, Centre-right): Reserves day is an important opportunity for colleagues in the House to support the reserves. It was called uniform to work day, and a number of hon. Members took part in it. Reserve forces and cadets associations will tell colleagues about opportunities to support the event, including an opportunity in the House of Commons for Members and researchers, both existing members of the reserves and those who are interested in joining.
Reserve Forces (Recruitment) — House of Commons, 2015-06-08
Topic: Defense
Karen Lumley (Conservative, Centre-right): The 37 Signal Regiment reservists, who are based in my constituency, do an amazing job and have been awarded the freedom of our borough. Will my hon. Friend inform the House how future reserve proposals will help the regiment to continue its brilliant work?
Covid-19 Update — House of Lords, 2021-11-10
Topic: Health
Joan Walmsley (Liberal Democrats, Centre to centre-left): My Lords, as we move towards 1 April, I want to raise the issue not just of the concerns of staff, which the Minister has rightly mentioned, but the concerns of patients. Could patients in a ward, an NHS clinic, primary care or any other health setting be informed as to which members of staff have not been vaccinated? Would they then have the right to politely request that they are treated only by vaccinated staff?
Covid-19 Update — House of Lords, 2021-11-10
Topic: Health
Paul Scriven (Liberal Democrats, Centre to centre-left): Evidence-based policy is really important on this. Statistics from the Nuffield Trust show that, with the mitigations that healthcare and hospitals are putting in place, hospital-acquired Covid rates have been coming down since the middle of the year, while rates in the community have been rising. The reason for that is that the mitigation includes face-covering measures which, as the NHS Chief Nursing Officer, Ruth May, said in July, "will remain in place across healthcare settings so that the most vulnerable people can continue to safely attend hospital" If that is the case, why was the Prime Minister not wearing a face covering when in a hospital this week?
Covid-19 Update — House of Lords, 2021-11-10
Topic: Health
Paul Scriven (Liberal Democrats, Centre to centre-left): As we have time, the Minister has just said from the Dispatch Box that the Prime Minister was following the rules of the trust he visited. That trust says on its website that you must "wear a face covering when you enter the hospital until you leave", and adds: "You must ensure that you wear your covering or mask throughout your visit and you must not remove your face covering/mask or kiss your loved one." By not wearing a mask, in either a clinical or non-clinical area, how was the Prime Minister carrying out the policy of that trust to try to save vulnerable people from being contaminated with Covid-19?
Business of the House (Virtual Proceedings and Topical Questions for Written Answer) — House of Lords, 2020-04-21
Topic: Health
Mary Watkins (Crossbench, Unknown): My Lords, I support the Motion and join in the thanks to all the staff who have made it possible. I particularly want to raise that at the end of the previous sitting I was quite distressed when some Members of the House felt that closing early and looking to the future was not necessarily the best thing. I said at the time that we were at the beginning of a public health crisis that we could not imagine. In the last three weeks our imagination has become reality The fact is that we will be modelling to the rest of society that we are trying to do our jobs, and fulfil our roles and our responsibilities, in the best way we can. While I would like it to be more public in the next two weeks, I think our duty in public health terms is illustrated today. It will be an incrementalist approach that we can improve as we go along, but I wholeheartedly add my thanks to those who have made it possible, and in particular to staff in care homes and the NHS, who need our support at this time.
Defence Storage and Distribution Agency — House of Commons, 2015-06-08
Topic: Defense
Questions: When he expects to complete negotiations on the sale of the Defence Storage and Distribution Agency in Ashchurch; and if he will make a statement.
Philip Martin Dunne (Conservative, Centre-right): I know that my hon. Friend takes a keen interest in the Ministry of Defence presence at Ashchurch in his constituency. I am pleased to be able to inform him and the House that a land sale development partnership contract was signed with Vinci St Modwen in March this year to promote the site through the planning process and ultimately to enable its redevelopment, subject to planning consent. We expect to commence transfer of the site to our development partner in phases from early 2018.
Defence Storage and Distribution Agency — House of Commons, 2015-06-08
Topic: Defense
Questions: When he expects to complete negotiations on the sale of the Defence Storage and Distribution Agency in Ashchurch; and if he will make a statement.
Philip Martin Dunne (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend rightly takes a great interest in the site for the welfare and future prospects of the employees from his constituency there. The 160 former employees and 80 agency staff within the Defence Support Group at Ashchurch were all transferred under the TUPE process across to Babcock on completion of that transaction on 31 March, and we have continuous and regular engagement with the trade union representatives to make sure that they are all fully informed.
Covid-19: Social Care Services — House of Lords, 2020-04-23
Topic: Health
Ilora Gillian Finlay (Crossbench, Unknown): My Lords, I thank the noble Baroness, Lady Wheeler, for this essential debate. This pandemic has become a palliative care emergency. I declare my role as vice-president of Hospice UK and Marie Curie. Care sector staff are providing extensive end-of-life care. They are skilled, compassionate and motivated, but low paid and, until now, unnoticed and unappreciated in society. Yet the mark of a civilised society is the way it cares for its vulnerable. The care sector is a bedrock of such a society Some of the most vulnerable can be difficult to care for. The Mental Capacity Act framework supports delivery of essential care and treatment, but safeguarding is harder. Covid guidance on the deprivation of liberty safeguards, DoLS, needs to cover greater responsibility for care staff while reducing bureaucracy Chairing the National Mental Capacity Forum, an interest that I declare, I see the care sector adapt with enthusiasm and profound caring to the challenges. Yet the care home staff feel abandoned. Personal protective equipment and weekly testing for all care home staff and residents are critical in controlling cross-infection. When will this happen? Staff from minority populations seem at higher risk of serious or fatal Covid-19. They are not deserting—far from it—but showing humanity and compassion in care. As a nurse said: "I’m like a policeman who is facing a terrorist attack … ready to face it, but what will happen to our family? … That’s the only worry I have." Who is responsible for staff death-in-service financial support Dying residents need medication for symptom control. For care homes, without easy and rapid access to medicines, why has the repurposing of medicines not yet been approved? I tabled Questions on it on 7 April. Draft guidance was produced on 14 April and issued in Northern Ireland on 20 April. Why not England and Wales? Has every clinical commissioning group been instructed to achieve integration with its social care providers in the long term? Is it time to develop nursing home medicine to support social care delivery as a distinct discipline, and to fully integrate health and social care? It should have happened a long time ago; it must happen now.
Covid-19: Social Care Services — House of Lords, 2020-04-23
Topic: Health
Molly Christine Meacher (Crossbench, Unknown): My Lords, I declare my interest in the register as chair of Dignity in Dying. One of the unexpected outcomes of the pandemic has been a national awakening, albeit very late, about the vital role of care workers and their commitment and determination to continue caring for their most vulnerable of patients, risking their own lives in the terrible absence of PPE. This is surely the moment to re-evaluate the care sector, not just for now but for the longer term. We know that care home residents who contract Covid-19 are generally not encouraged to go to hospital. Their end-of-life care is left in the hands of the care staff. This may be the wish of the patient, but we do not know that this is the case. Are the wishes of the patient the determining factor in decisions about hospital admission and other end-of-life decisions Many noble Lords have focused on the vital issue of funding for the social care sector. I want instead to focus on the implications of the vital role in end-of-life care being played by care homes, not only during this crisis but always. The reality is that care homes sit alongside hospitals and hospices in caring for the dying. This is skilled work. Apart from physical nursing care and symptom relief, it requires skills in assessing the mental capacity of patients, undertaking sensible conversations about a patient’s wishes as their condition deteriorates, and the preparation of advanced care plans. All this has come to the fore in the Covid-19 crisis, but of course these skills are always needed in care homes. We need to revisit the training, skills and pay of care staff I welcome the advice from the CMO and the Chief Nursing Officer on 7 April encouraging vulnerable patients to discuss their treatment preferences and record them in an advanced care plan. Only then can we be sure that their wishes are respected. This advice should apply much more widely. None of us knows when we will be struck down by a heart attack, stroke or deadly virus. Every one of us needs an advanced care plan. A number of charities, including Prostate Cancer UK and Compassion in Dying, the sister charity to Dignity in Dying, provide excellent materials and guidance on end-of-life planning, but these services need to be supported by the Government, not just now but in the future In this context, I strongly support Care England’s call for a commissioner for older people. Can the Minister set out the Government’s response to this proposal? When people think about dying, they desperately want to have some control over how and when they die. A commissioner could help to achieve this. Sadly, many Covid-19 victims suffer terrible deaths. Their end- of-life wishes were never known.
VJ Day — House of Commons, 2015-06-08
Topic: Defense
Mark Lancaster (Conservative, Centre-right): I am delighted that the hon. Lady clearly shares my passion and determination to ensure that this year’s events will be a fitting tribute to veterans and their families, such as hers, who will be very much the focus. We are committed to marking the 70th anniversary of VJ Day and ensuring that veterans of the far east campaigns have a national event that provides an opportunity for the public and the nation to pay their respects and offer their gratitude. I will be delighted to work with any Member of the House who wishes to pursue that.
VJ Day — House of Commons, 2015-06-08
Topic: Defense
Andrew Theakstone Percy (Conservative, Centre-right): Last year I received a very moving letter from a veteran in Goole, Edgar Sheppard, whom I subsequently visited in his care home. He told me how concerned he was that young people did not know the sacrifice that he and his Burma veterans had endured. Can we ensure that our cadet forces and the Ministry of Defence work with the Department for Education to ensure that the school children of today know about the sacrifices of yesterday?
Covid-19 — House of Lords, 2020-04-23
Topic: Health
Molly Christine Meacher (Crossbench, Unknown): My Lords, I thank the Ministers for all that they are doing in this very difficult situation and, of course, all our wonderful NHS and care staff for what they do every day and every night As the Minister knows, the countries most successful in controlling Covid-19 are those with comprehensive testing and contact-tracing systems. We are thrilled to bits that we have two leading research teams in the country—great applause to them—but, until their vaccines are available across the country, the testing regime will be the only approach that will enable a return to any kind of normality. A large-scale sample, or provision, of testing and tracing and so on for care workers will not achieve that objective. Will the Minister tell the House if or when the Government will introduce a comprehensive—I emphasise that word—scheme of testing, contact-tracing and, as has been said, isolation, of all who have symptoms of Covid-19? This means not a sample and not just people in the care sector, but the nation. That is the only way out of the tight corner we are in. If not, can the Minister explain why?
Government Contracts: Randox Laboratories — House of Lords, 2022-02-21
Topic: Health
Dorothea Glenys Thornton (Labour, Centre-left): My Lords, at the heart of this Question is almost £500 million of public money, awarded in two public health contracts to Randox Laboratories without competition. My honourable friend asked this Question in the Commons and raised the dissonance in what has been said by the Government over the months since the issue was first raised. I have two questions for the Minister. Does he agree with the former Minister of State for Efficiency and Transformation, the noble Lord, Lord Agnew, that the Government were paying dramatically over the odds for Randox products? If so, can he explain why the Government then entered into a second, more lucrative, contract with the firm? Secondly, the chief operating officer for the Civil Service requested the restoration of competitive tendering by March 2021. Can the Minister set out how many further contracts have been issued after that date without tender and explain why the emergency procurement rules are still in place almost a year later, given that we are coming, as the Prime Minister just told the Commons "out of Covid"?
Government Contracts: Randox Laboratories — House of Lords, 2022-02-21
Topic: Health
Robert Maurice Lipson Winston (Labour, Centre-left): My Lords, the Minister suggests that the Government were panicking. Does he agree that panic in a laboratory or when one is dealing with tests of this kind is not satisfactory? Is not one of the problems that it is clear that Randox’s methods were not satisfactory and would not stand up to absolutely accurate testing? Is it not the case that the Government still cannot tell us what percentage of its PCR tests were inaccurate or in some ways contaminated?
Government Contracts: Randox Laboratories — House of Lords, 2022-02-21
Topic: Health
George Robertson (Labour, Centre-left): My Lords, the Government held a full-scale exercise in 2016 based on pandemic flu, Operation Cygnus. Anybody who reads the report of that exercise today can see that there was a looming problem with PPE. Between 2016 and 2020, the Government did nothing about that identified problem, so that, when 2020 came, we domestically produced only 1% of the PPE that was required in the NHS. Why was so little done to be ready for something that had been predicted in advance?
Defence Spending (NATO Target) — House of Commons, 2015-06-08
Topic: Defense
Michael Fallon (Conservative, Centre-right): The purpose of the alliance is to defend its members. That is why our troops were exercising last week in Estonia and will shortly be exercising in Romania and the Baltic sea, and why our Typhoons are flying with the Norwegians to protect the skies over Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania in the face of Russian aggression. We are one of the nuclear members of the NATO alliance, and that nuclear shield helps to protect all members of the alliance.
Defence Spending (NATO Target) — House of Commons, 2015-06-08
Topic: Defense
Julian Murray Lewis (Conservative, Centre-right): When the Secretary of State is next having a word in the shell-like ear of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, will he mention that it does not make a lot of sense for any Government to say that defence is the first duty of Government if they protect other Departments’ spending but not defence spending?
Defence Spending (NATO Target) — House of Commons, 2015-06-08
Topic: Defense
Michael Fallon (Conservative, Centre-right): I know of my right hon. Friend’s long-standing commitment to defence and to defence expenditure. He is right, of course, that the first duty of Government is to defend our country and our people. I reminded him earlier of the commitments in the manifesto to protect the size and power of our armed forces right through this Parliament. However, I note what he has said. Those commitments are for the remaining three financial years, from 2016-17 onwards. These are matters for negotiation in the autumn.
Defence Spending (NATO Target) — House of Commons, 2015-06-08
Topic: Defense
Michael Fallon (Conservative, Centre-right): Let me assure the hon. Gentleman that the in-year savings that we have been asked to find for the current financial year are way below the original demand of the Treasury. They do not affect the 2% target that we are continuing to meet, they will have no effect on manpower numbers or on current operations—I have just explained to the House that we are extending one of our current operations in Iraq—and they will have no effect on the baseline of defence expenditure before the negotiations begin in the autumn. These savings will fall on some in-year expenditure on travel costs and on consultancy, and we will defer some spending on infrastructure and equipment from this financial year to the next—
Defence Spending (NATO Target) — House of Commons, 2015-06-08
Topic: Defense
Richard Benyon (Conservative, Centre-right): We are all waiting for the National Security Council risk assessment that the Government are carrying out at the moment. Can my right hon. Friend assure me that there will be an intellectual and coherent thread from that through to the strategic defence and security review, and from that to the comprehensive spending review?
Defence Spending (NATO Target) — House of Commons, 2015-06-08
Topic: Defense
Michael Fallon (Conservative, Centre-right): Yes, I can. The review will be based on the risk assessment that is now being updated from the 2010 assessment. That will take us through the work that is being done under the review, which is being undertaken at the same time as the spending review, so all these things come together in identifying the threats we face and the capabilities we need to address them.
Helen and Douglas House Hospice — House of Commons, 2018-05-11
Topic: Health
Layla Michelle Moran (Liberal Democrats, Centre to centre-left): I am so grateful that the House has allowed me to speak about funding for the Helen and Douglas House Hospice in Oxford. It is an incredibly important matter, not least because Helen House was the world’s first children’s hospice, starting the children’s hospice movement that spread around the world. It opened in 1982 to provide a home for terminally ill babies, children, young adults and their families. In 2004, Douglas House was opened by Her Majesty the Queen to provide care for 16 to 35-year-olds, not just in Oxfordshire but throughout the whole south-east. It provides specialist services for young adults, bridging that crucial gap between children’s and adult hospices I am sorry to say that we have to be here today because those services are under threat. Indeed, 48,000 people signed a local petition—that is extraordinary for a local petition—calling on the Prime Minister to intervene to stop the closure of Douglas House and to make sure that those services are properly funded. That is a staggering amount of public support and I hope that the Minister takes that to heart today Let me start by outlining the value and importance of Helen and Douglas House. I think that it is best summed up by my constituent Alison, who is a volunteer in the hospice. She said: "Helen and Douglas House really is one of a kind, providing a lifeline both to those needing end of life care, and their families—from befriending and home support services, to The Elephant Club for bereaved siblings; to the annual remembrance service. Helen and Douglas House brings these families together, providing a support network to help them enjoy the time they have left together, and to face the future afterwards." Families rely on the work of Helen and Douglas House and they are indebted, as we all are, to the dedicated army of staff, volunteers and fundraisers who go above and beyond, and also to the nurses and the medical team.
Armed Forces Covenant — House of Commons, 2015-06-08
Topic: Defense
Mark Lancaster (Conservative, Centre-right): Yes, of course. The hon. Gentleman will appreciate that over the past three years, some £150 million of LIBOR funding has been used for the military covenant. I am determined that that should be spread equally across the country, and I will look into the matter that he has raised.
Covid-19: R Rate and Lockdown Measures — House of Lords, 2020-06-09
Topic: Health
Karan Bilimoria (Crossbench, Unknown): My Lords, given that the R rate is now below one across the UK, will the Minister acknowledge that the risk of infection from reducing social distancing from two metres to one metre goes from 1.3% to 2.6% and that the WHO is recommending one metre as safe? Denmark, France, Singapore, China, Hong Kong and Lithuania have moved to one metre. A pub or restaurant can barely open with a social distancing rule of two metres, being able to operate at only 30%; with one metre, they could operate at over 70%. At one metre, you can have four times as many people in a space as at two metres. It is the difference between being in business and going out of business for the hospitality industry, which employs 3.5 million people, let alone for theatres, cinemas and the university sector. Now that the Government are saying that masks are to be worn on public transport, and given the PPE measures within the sector, does the Minister not agree that we need to get the economy back and working as soon as possible, safely?