argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Referendums — House of Commons, 2016-02-29
Topic: Mixed Topics
William Nigel Paul Cash (Conservative, Centre-right): I am fascinated by my right hon. Friend’s reference to vigorous and open debate, because it is quite clear from the preceding urgent question and from many other matters that have come to light recently that the one thing that everybody needs—information—is the one thing that people are going to find themselves deprived of. If the voters do not have balanced, impartial and accurate information, what are they supposed to do?
Referendums — House of Commons, 2016-02-29
Topic: Mixed Topics
David Roy Lidington (Conservative, Centre-right): The right hon. Gentleman puts the case very well. Others have said that June is simply too soon, and I do not agree. Traditionally, in our history, a general election has been held with only six weeks’ notice. Only since the implementation of the Fixed Term Parliaments Act 2011 under the coalition Government have we moved away from that practice. The referendum has had a much longer gestation period. The intention to hold a referendum before the end of 2017 was announced in the Prime Minister’s Bloomberg speech in January 2013, and it was reaffirmed at the general election last May, and again when the European Union Referendum Act received Royal Assent in December 2015. The intended date was announced four months in advance. The referendum has been a long time coming.
Referendums — House of Commons, 2016-02-29
Topic: Mixed Topics
David Roy Lidington (Conservative, Centre-right): We took account of that letter. We also took careful account of the specific request from the official foreign affairs spokesman of the Scottish National party, the right hon. Member for Gordon, during Foreign Office questions on 12 January for an assurance that the date of the referendum would be "at least six weeks after the date of the Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish elections".—[Official Report, 12 January 2016; Vol. 604, c. 683.] That request made by the right hon. Gentleman—I presume on behalf of his party, for which he was speaking at Foreign Office questions—has been met, and has been met in full The Electoral Commission has confirmed that it is content with the Government’s proposals and has said that, in its view, arrangements for a well-run referendum are now well advanced. The statutory instrument has been considered by both the Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments and the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee. Both have considered the statutory instrument, and neither found any cause for concern I turn now to the other aspects of the regulations. They are very much in line with the framework set up by the European Union Referendum Act 2015, so I shall be brief. As well as setting the date, the regulations do three things. First, they set the start date for the designation process. That is the process by which the Electoral Commission appoints lead campaigners on one or both sides. We have followed the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 and allowed a full six weeks. That will give campaigners a four-week window to finalise and submit their applications, after which the Electoral Commission will have up to two weeks to decide which, if any, applicants to designate as the lead for each side. Let me be absolutely clear, to avoid misunderstanding. The regulations do not tell the Electoral Commission how to make its decision. That decision is entirely impartial, and the test the Electoral Commission must apply when making its decision is set out in the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act, as modified by the European Union Referendum Act. All the regulations do is set the start of the process as 4 March, while the rest of the timetable, finishing on 14 April at the latest, was set by the 2000 Act.
Referendums — House of Commons, 2016-02-29
Topic: Immigration
William Nigel Paul Cash (Conservative, Centre-right): Whether or not we agree on the immigration issue, does the hon. Gentleman agree with what I said on 3 February? As everyone knows from the recent figures, the question of immigration—which is actually about numbers and the effect on social services, including those in Scotland—has now been whittled down to a narrow argument about in-work benefits, on which the Government want to go on harping so that they can distract attention from the really big question, which is "Who governs this country, and are we going to be in the second tier of a two-tier German Europe?"
Referendums — House of Commons, 2016-02-29
Topic: Other
Robert Alexander Stewart (Conservative, Centre-right): I am listening carefully to what the hon. Gentleman is saying. I am intrigued to know when the SNP and the other parties would like the referendum to be held. I assume that it will not be in 543 days.
Referendums — House of Commons, 2016-02-29
Topic: Mixed Topics
John Alan Redwood (Conservative, Centre-right): With references and proper statistical bases. Those important facts should be put before the British people. Indeed, the Minister would be wise to do that from his own point of view—perhaps I should not help him as much as I am apparently trying to do. The Government have been rumbled on this. The press and a lot of the public are saying that they want factual, mature and sensible information setting out the risks of staying in, the risks of leaving and what it would look like in either case, but that is not what we are getting We have had another example in the past few days. We have been witnessing a long-term decline of the pound against the dollar for many months, because we are living through a period of dollar strength. In the past few days, when Brexit was in the news, we were told that the pound was going down because of fears about Brexit, whereas that was clearly not the case on other days when the pound had been going down. However, on those same days, the Government bond market had been going up. The prices of bonds had been rising and our creditworthiness was assessed as being better, but I did not hear the Government saying that the idea of Brexit was raising Britain’s credit standing. We could make that case just as easily as we could make the case that the fear of Brexit was leading to a fall in the pound That is the kind of tendentious information that I hope the Minister will reconsider if he wishes to keep up the normally high standards of Government documentation and use impartial civil service advice in the right tradition, which we in the House of Commons would like to see. I can see that a few colleagues are not entirely persuaded that those high standards are always met, but I shall give the Government the benefit of the doubt. I have certainly seen many Government documents that achieve higher standards than the ones on this matter I again urge the Minister to make sure that he leaves enough time in the action-packed timetable to produce high-quality, balanced information that includes the risks of staying in and the wild ride to political union that others have in mind, as well as what he sees as the risks of leaving. For instance, the Government should point out that if we stop paying the £10 billion of net contributions—money we do not get back—that will immediately improve the balance of payments by one fifth next year. Would that not be a marvellous advantage? I do not see it being pointed out in any of the current material in order to show some kind of balance.
Referendums — House of Commons, 2016-02-29
Topic: Civil Rights
Anne Margaret Main (Conservative, Centre-right): My right hon. Friend is making a hugely powerful argument. The answer is quite simple: the Government do not want the facts in there—they do not want the British public to know. The British public will come to that conclusion, and it is not a good conclusion if we are to have a balanced debate on the referendum.
Referendums — House of Commons, 2016-02-29
Topic: Mixed Topics
William Nigel Paul Cash (Conservative, Centre-right): I am most grateful to the hon. Gentleman for giving way, especially as he is a member of the European Scrutiny Committee, of which I have the honour to be chair. Does he agree that a democratic question lies at the heart of this matter? If there is information on which the voter is expected to make his decision, as was the case with the Scottish situation a few years ago, the bottom line is that, without genuine and properly sourced information and proper time, the British people will effectively be cheated?
UK Steel Industry — House of Commons, 2016-02-29
Topic: Mixed Topics
Mark Andrew Pritchard (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Lady speaks of this time of need. I grew up just a few miles from Port Talbot steelworks and played very poor rugby as a scrum half at a school close by. At this time, is it not better that all parties work together for the good of the British steel industry, rather than making party political points, when it is pretty obvious that the steel industry globally has changed not only in the past year, but over the past two decades?
UK Steel Industry — House of Commons, 2016-02-29
Topic: Mixed Topics
Mark Andrew Pritchard (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank the hon. Lady, who is being generous in giving way—I believe in mixed rugby teams, so she is welcome on the pitch anytime. It so happens that 26 British companies were asked to tender for the offshore patrol vessels to which the hon. Member for Bridgend (Mrs Moon) referred, but only one did, so only 20% of the steel for those vessels will be British. Surely she agrees that it is not for the Government, or indeed for the Opposition, to promote and market individual steel companies, whether British or not; it is for those companies to market themselves, and it is for the Government to set the framework in which they can do the business.
UK Steel Industry — House of Commons, 2016-02-29
Topic: Mixed Topics
John Alan Redwood (Conservative, Centre-right): I agree with the hon. Lady; we need a streel industry and there needs to be cross-party working to try to find the way forward. What does she think the Government could do to try to get more steel orders? The main problem is that there just is not enough British steel being bought.
UK Steel Industry — House of Commons, 2016-02-29
Topic: Mixed Topics
Sajid Javid (Conservative, Centre-right): If the hon. Lady means what she has just said, which is that she wants a level playing field, we are in agreement, but the entire argument she made moments ago was for punitive tariffs, which would drive up prices for businesses and consumers and risk potentially ruinous retaliation from other nations. Artificially over-inflating the price of imported steel would have a hugely damaging effect on British companies further up the manufacturing chain. Of course, I would like to see such companies using British steel rather than cheaper, lower quality imports, and let me take this opportunity to urge them to do so. However, forcing them to buy British steel by making imported steel prohibitively expensive is not the way to make that happen. Higher duties on imports of raw materials eventually mean higher prices paid by manufacturers and consumers alike, putting countless more jobs at risk.
UK Steel Industry — House of Commons, 2016-02-29
Topic: Mixed Topics
Sajid Javid (Conservative, Centre-right): I think I have already answered that question. We have been working closely with the industry to deliver as much support as possible. At October’s steel summit, the industry had five asks of the Government. Today, I am pleased to say that we have already delivered on four of them. Let me take this opportunity to thank my colleagues the Minister for the Cabinet Office, the Minister for Small Business, Industry and Enterprise, and the Commercial Secretary to the Treasury for their unstinting work.
UK Steel Industry — House of Commons, 2016-02-29
Topic: Mixed Topics
John Alan Redwood (Conservative, Centre-right): Will the Secretary of State tell us what he and his colleagues in Government can do to ensure that in big public sector procurement programmes in defence, railway engineering or construction, we get the maximum British content for the steel industry?
UK Steel Industry — House of Commons, 2016-02-29
Topic: Mixed Topics
Sajid Javid (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Gentleman will be pleased to know that we are working with all Departments, including the Ministry of Defence, to make sure that they do whatever needs to be done to make maximum use of the new procurement rules The third ask from the industry was greater flexibility on EU emissions legislation. We have successfully negotiated longer lead-in times for the implementation of emissions regulations. The fourth ask was for action on unfair trading practices. As I said a few moments ago, we have led the EU in securing provisional duties on unfair imports of rebar steel and cold rolled flat steel. We have welcomed new investigations into unfair imports of hot rolled flat products, heavy plate and large seamless pipes. We continue to pressure the European Commission for further action against unfair trading, including the use of the registration procedure where appropriate.
UK Steel Industry — House of Commons, 2016-02-29
Topic: Mixed Topics
Richard Michael John Ogilvie Graham (Conservative, Centre-right): Before my right hon. Friend comes to his last point, in answer to the question raised earlier about MOD procurement, my understanding is that on the two Queen Elizabeth class aircraft carriers, 77,000 out of 82,000 tonnes of steel was UK-sourced. Will he confirm that figure?
UK Steel Industry — House of Commons, 2016-02-29
Topic: Mixed Topics
Sajid Javid (Conservative, Centre-right): That is why we need to use whatever evidence is available. That means working closely with the industry, listening to it and taking note of its evidence. If the industry is saying that the right level is 20% to 30%, it is worth listening to that We have provided support packages worth up to £90 million for communities affected by plant closures in Scunthorpe, Redcar and Rotherham. The help on offer includes retraining, support for local companies that want to take on former steelworkers, and emergency help for workers who find themselves in a financial crisis. Earlier this month, Lord Heseltine announced the creation of an interim body for managing the former SSI site in Redcar, to ensure that it reaches its full potential. Lord Heseltine is also conducting a review of inward investment in the Tees valley, as well as looking at how to enhance education, employment and skills in the area As for the plants that are still operating, we continue to work with the Scottish and Welsh Governments and with individual companies on their specific needs. For example, we have repeatedly made it clear that we want the blast furnaces to carry on at Port Talbot, and we are working with Tata and the Welsh Assembly Government to help to make that happen. Although this remains an uncertain time, it is encouraging that Tata Steel Europe has announced that Greybull Capital is its preferred bidder for the purchase of the Tata long products business. That is a positive step. The negotiations are a matter for the companies involved, but we remain in regular contact with Tata about its future plans. If it is successful, the sale is likely to involve some element of state financial support, on commercial terms, for the new owner We have set up a joint Government and industry steel council to take remaining actions forward and to work through the conclusions of an independent study into the competitiveness of the UK steel sector. I will co-chair the first meeting of the steel council on Wednesday.
UK Steel Industry — House of Commons, 2016-02-29
Topic: Mixed Topics
Andrew Theakstone Percy (Conservative, Centre-right): I hope that my right hon. Friend will take note of the Tata support fund that has been launched in north Lincolnshire for those in the supply chain. On the question of likely state support for the Greybull sale, which we are all behind, will he go into a little more detail about what that might look like and at what level it might be set?
UK Steel Industry — House of Commons, 2016-02-29
Topic: Mixed Topics
Sajid Javid (Conservative, Centre-right): I fully understand why my hon. Friend has asked about that, but the discussions are commercially sensitive at this point. I am happy to reassure him that we are in deep discussions with Greybull, Tata and others, and that where we are able to help by providing support on commercial terms, we most certainly will do so The hon. Member for Wallasey has called for us to offer greater support to manufacturing supply chains across the UK. The Government are absolutely committed to British manufacturing. That is why we are investing in infrastructure across the country, and that is why, for example, we are totally committed to building four Successor submarines for our nuclear deterrent. Building the Trident replacement will secure our nation and secure thousands of skilled manufacturing jobs. Sadly, it was no surprise to see the Leader of the Opposition leading a demonstration against it this Saturday. Senior members of the GMB union called that "armchair generals playing student politics" The crisis facing the British and European steel industry is grave indeed, but the charge that this Government are not doing all we can simply does not stick. We cannot simply increase the global price of steel or reduce the level of production in other countries.
UK Steel Industry — House of Commons, 2016-02-29
Topic: Mixed Topics
Sajid Javid (Conservative, Centre-right): If the Welsh Government had listened to the leader of the Conservative party, they would have been in a far better position to help the steel industry locally There are things we simply cannot do—we cannot simply increase the global price of steel or reduce the level of production in other countries—but we have done everything possible and we will continue to do so as long as such action is needed. We will leave no one behind in this one nation.
UK Steel Industry — House of Commons, 2016-02-29
Topic: Mixed Topics
Kevin John Foster (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Lady is going through the work that the devolved Administrations can do. Does she share my disappointment, however, that from the decks of the 94% British steel-built Queen Elizabeth aircraft carriers can be seen a bridge that the Scottish Government are building with foreign steel?
UK Steel Industry — House of Commons, 2016-02-29
Topic: Mixed Topics
Huw William Merriman (Conservative, Centre-right): Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker, for calling me to speak in this important debate on the UK steel industry I would be the first to acknowledge that the constituency of Bexhill and Battle has not, to the best of my knowledge, made a large contribution to the steel industry. However, as my name suggests, my father and those who came before him hailed from south Wales, where the industry has always loomed large. It was because of my background that I put in to speak and, in so doing, I wish to express my support for an industry that the Prime Minister recently referred to as "vital". It is with sadness that I have watched events unfold in Redcar, Scunthorpe, Scotland and south Wales. In parts of the country that rely on a specific industry, the impact is felt not just by those who are directly employed, but by the many people whose jobs and incomes rely on it indirectly.
UK Steel Industry — House of Commons, 2016-02-29
Topic: Mixed Topics
Huw William Merriman (Conservative, Centre-right): I accept that point. This issue extends to the whole of the UK, including the constituency that I serve The steel industry has experienced challenges that are, as the Financial Times put it recently, akin to a perfect storm. First, since 2000, there has been massive growth in the volume of steel that is produced internationally, particularly by China. Secondly, the recent slowing of global growth, particularly in China, has meant that steel production has outstripped consumption. Thirdly, the surplus steel has been exported, again largely from China, which has pushed the price down for British producers. There is a similar theme in other sectors, such as our oil industry. Accordingly, British steel is being sold at a much reduced price, and because British industry has higher overheads, that has hit our steel industry hard That leads us to the question of what the Government can do in the face of global market events. I am pleased that they have voiced their support for the industry and are already working on the action requested in the motion in the following ways. First, they are pressing with some success, as we have heard today, for more vigorous anti-dumping and anti-subsidy measures across the EU to prevent Chinese firms from selling steel at sub-market rates across Europe Secondly, the Government are taking the lead in public procurement to ensure that, where possible within EU state aid rules, the Government buy British steel. To that end, I was pleased to hear the Secretary of State mention that public procurement contracts can take into consideration not just the specific costs but the wider socioeconomic benefits of buying British steel Thirdly, the Government are encouraging British private industry, such as our burgeoning auto trade, to buy British. Fourthly, they are assessing the tax and regulatory costs and what the industry can do to drive up its competitiveness. The Government have taken a lead in doing that with the industry Finally, the Government are driving discussions in the European Council on taking similar action at EU level, as the EU is the second largest producer of steel globally, albeit at about 25% of total Chinese production. I hope that those levers, which the Government and industry are pulling, will reach fruition and assist our steel producers and those who work in the industry I would like to respond to some of the points that have emanated from the Opposition Benches. I fully understand why they have been made but, being a Government Member, it would be remiss of me not to comment on them. It is not realistic for the Government to step in and effectively underpin the steel price by pumping money into the industry, for two obvious reasons. First, EU state aid rules mean that the UK is largely prohibited from providing financial assistance that could distort prices between producers within the EU.
Commonwealth War Graves Commission: Pension Fund — House of Commons, 2016-02-29
Topic: Public Lands
Mark Lancaster (Conservative, Centre-right): I congratulate the hon. Member for Glasgow South West (Chris Stephens) on securing the debate. I must confess that I find myself in a slightly difficult position, because I have no direct responsibility for this issue, for reasons that I will explain. However, I am determined, as ever, to help in any way I can. Although the hon. Gentleman has asked a number of detailed questions, some of which I hope to be able to address this evening, I will of course write to him in due course about any that I am unable to answer, having approached the Commonwealth War Graves Commission on his behalf.