argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Policing and Crime Bill — House of Commons, 2016-03-07
Topic: Health
Charles Ashley Rupert Walker (Conservative, Centre-right): I do agree that we need more beds. It cannot be right that children and adults at a point of crisis are sometimes driven hundreds of miles from their homes to receive treatment. The right hon. Gentleman may recall that one of his predecessors, the right hon. Member for Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle (Alan Johnson), had an Adjournment debate a few months ago on how we treat children who are in mental health crisis, and he pointed out that one of his constituents was being treated 200 miles from his family home. That is not acceptable. The right hon. Member for Leigh (Andy Burnham) did say that, outside the cut and thrust of this place, he had a good working relationship with the Home Secretary. It would be fantastic if, on this matter, the two Front-Bench teams could work closely together, along with the Secretary of State for Health, to make sure we get this right Let me look briefly at the successes of triage, of which my hon. Friend the Member for Halesowen and Rowley Regis will be aware. There has been a 20% reduction in Derbyshire; 13% in Devon and Cornwall; 39% in Thames Valley; 31% in Sussex; 27% in the west midlands; and 26% in West Yorkshire. The reductions in the number of people being put under police custody under section 136 in these areas were greater still. For example, there was a 50% reduction in Derbyshire; 85% in Thames Valley; 11% in Devon and Cornwall; and 44% in West Yorkshire. Those are real numbers that have real meaning and that are making a real difference to many people’s lives The Royal College of Psychiatrists and other interested parties are calling for the Bill to be amended so that the Secretary of State for Health is obliged to report back to Parliament on the range of crisis responses in each area. That could include street triage teams, availability of acute psychiatric care beds, and health-based places of safety. That sort of information would help the Home Secretary and her team to deliver on their worthwhile pledge, and that pledge needs the support of the Department of Health I have spoken for longer than I wanted to, but, in conclusion, I point out that a mental health event is not a criminal event. It is a health crisis. We need to look after people with care and compassion and commitment. It is no good just talking about things. It is no good looking good, as some woman once said to me—it is important that we spend more time being good. We need to be good, not to look good.
Policing and Crime Bill — House of Commons, 2016-03-07
Topic: Health
James Morris (Conservative, Centre-right): We have a very close relationship As my hon. Friend the Member for Broxbourne has pointed out, in my role as chair of the all-party parliamentary group on mental health I very much welcome the parts of the Bill that relate to sections 135 and 136 of the Mental Health Act 1983. It is an issue in which I have long taken an interest in this House, and I had an Adjournment debate on it in Westminster Hall in 2013 A number of people have influenced my thinking about the importance of the changes in the Bill, particularly as regards some of the work that has been done by West Midlands police. In particular, I want to mention Inspector Michael Brown, who has an interesting blog that other hon. Members might wish to look at. He is a mental health blogger and came to see me in my constituency office four or five years ago to talk about how the nature of policing was changing in society, the importance of dealing with mental health on the ground, and how the nature of policing meant that police officers were putting themselves in situations in which they were essentially having to make decisions about whether or not to use the powers under the Mental Health Act, as well as about whether they had the ability, knowledge and training to make such decisions If we look at the history of the Mental Health Act, we can see that it was initially conceived to cope with people who were absconding from asylums. It was updated in 1983, including through the section 135 and 136 provisions, and today’s changes are very important as the Mental Health Act needs to reflect the more modern experience of policing and of working with health professionals. Sometimes, we need to question whether we should go further in changing the Mental Health Act, because one downside of police officers specifically being given powers to detain people is that that raises issues to do with liberty and whether somebody is capable of making their own decisions, even when they are in mental health crisis. The fundamental point, which my hon. Friend also made, is that I do not think that any civilised person would say that there should be any circumstances in which a child suffering a mental health crisis ends up in a police cell. I welcome the changes to section 136 The Bill also confers regulation-making powers on the Secretary of State to define when an adult should legitimately be placed in a police cell.
Policing and Crime Bill — House of Commons, 2016-03-07
Topic: Defense
Robert Alexander Stewart (Conservative, Centre-right): As I listen to my hon. Friend’s description, I am thinking of an incident on the ground. I am reflecting on the fact that without proper co-ordination, there might not be anyone in charge. I assume that SOPs— standard operational procedures—will automatically appoint someone in charge. That will be decided very quickly at a major incident.
Terror Financing — House of Commons, 2016-01-12
Topic: Defense
Tobias Martin Ellwood (Conservative, Centre-right): A key strand of the strategy to defeat Daesh is to cut off its financing. A series of international agreements restricting Daesh’s income streams has come into force, including UN Security Council resolution 2170, which restricts Daesh’s trade networks and sanctions individuals who are financially supporting Daesh, and UN Security Council resolution 2253, adopted in December—it was recently agreed by all Finance Ministers, including the Chancellor—which reorientates the UN al-Qaeda sanctions regime to target Daesh.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2016-01-12
Topic: Defense
Philip Hammond (Conservative, Centre-right): We need to be careful here. The MSF hospital attack in Sadaa is still being investigated, but so far there is no evidence that it was hit by a missile, although it clearly came under attack. We are looking urgently at the situation on the ground We have a very robust export licensing process. There is a series of questions against which any export licence application must be tested, and we apply it rigorously. When a conflict is under way, whether we are talking about Yemen today or Operation Protective Edge in Gaza in the summer of 2014, we take particular care to apply the criteria diligently. That is what has been done, and that is what will be done in relation to any future arms licensing applications that are received.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2016-01-12
Topic: Defense
Questions: My former constituent Ahmad Zeidan, who is a British national, is currently serving a nine-year custodial sentence in the United Arab Emirates. Mr Zeidan’s family have informed me that, while in prison, he has been subjected to brutal beatings and threats of physical and sexual violence by police officers. Mr Zeidan maintains that he is innocent, and that he was coerced into signing a confession written in Arabic, a language that he cannot read. Will the Minister meet me, and representatives of Mr Zeidan’s family, to see what can be done to help secure his early release?; Given the appalling suffering that Ebola caused in 2014 and 2015, what steps is the United Kingdom taking to ensure that it is permanently addressed in west Africa?; I commend Ministers for their prompt and proactive response to the dreadful news from Chennai yesterday morning that my constituent Ray Tindall and the other men on the Seaman Guard Ohio had been sentenced to five years in prison. May I suggest, however, that it would be proactive now for the highest level of the British Government to contact the highest level of the Indian Government to find a political solution to bring the lads home, given that the legal processes have not necessarily worked well?; Increased diplomatic and political co-operation is vital in settling international and regional disputes in the Asia-Pacific region. What steps are the Government taking to progress the strategic partnership between Japan and the UK?
Philip Hammond (Conservative, Centre-right): I am grateful to my hon. Friend for her question. Fortuitously, I was in Japan on Friday conducting a strategic dialogue with my Japanese counterpart. The strategic defence and security review published last autumn identified Japan as Britain’s principal security partner in Asia. That will continue to be the case and we are building that security partnership while strengthening our trade and investment partnership.
Social Care Services — House of Commons, 2016-02-08
Topic: Health
Marcus Charles Jones (Conservative, Centre-right): This Government are absolutely committed to the full integration of health and social care by 2020, and we will require all areas to have a clear plan for achieving that by 2017. The hon. Gentleman will also be interested to know that, by the end of the decade, the spending review does include more than £500 million for the disabled facilities grant, which is more than double the amount this year. That will fund around 85,000 home adaptations by that year, and is expected to prevent 8,500 people from needing to go into a care home by 2019-20.
Social Care Services — House of Commons, 2016-02-08
Topic: Health
Questions: Adult social care will be one of the biggest challenges that we face over the next several decades. Does the Minister agree that more needs to be done to integrate health and social care, particularly building on the success of the Better Care Fund, to encourage local authorities to work with local health providers to come up with innovative solutions for adult social care?
Marcus Charles Jones (Conservative, Centre-right): I know that my hon. Friend is a real campaigner on this issue. As he identifies, the Better Care Fund is paying dividends. We are seeing significant joint working through the Better Care Fund, which, in many areas, is reducing delayed transfers of care from hospital. We are absolutely intent on spreading best practice around all areas of the country. Plans are also in place to improve areas that are the most challenged.
Social Care Services — House of Commons, 2016-02-08
Topic: Health
Questions: Adult social care will be one of the biggest challenges that we face over the next several decades. Does the Minister agree that more needs to be done to integrate health and social care, particularly building on the success of the Better Care Fund, to encourage local authorities to work with local health providers to come up with innovative solutions for adult social care?
Marcus Charles Jones (Conservative, Centre-right): The funding coming into the Better Care Fund—£1.5 billion—is all new money for adult social care, and it is going directly to local authorities. The absolute key is the integration of health and social care, and as I have set out to the hon. Member for Luton North (Kelvin Hopkins) and my hon. Friend the Member for Halesowen and Rowley Regis (James Morris), the Government are determined to achieve that integration.
Junior Doctors’ Contract Negotiations — House of Commons, 2016-02-08
Topic: Health
Benedict Gummer (Conservative, Centre-right): I would be delighted to update the House on the junior doctors’ proposed industrial action. The Government were elected on a mandate to provide for the NHS the resources it asked for and to make our NHS a truly seven-day service. The provision of consistent clinical standards on every day of the week demands better weekend support services, such as physiotherapy, pharmacy and diagnostic scans; better seven-day social care services, to facilitate weekend discharging; and better primary care access, to help to tackle avoidable weekend admissions Consistent seven-day services also demand reform of staff contracts, including those of junior doctors, to help hospitals to roster clinicians in a way that matches patient demand more evenly across every day of the week. In October 2014, the British Medical Association withdrew from talks on reforming the junior doctors’ contract and, despite the fact that the Government asked it to return, did not start talking again until the end of November last year in talks facilitated by the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service. Throughout December we made very good progress on a wide range of issues and reached agreement on the vast majority of the BMA’s concerns Regrettably, we did not come to an agreement on two substantive issues, including weekend pay rates. Following strike action last month, the Secretary of State appointed Sir David Dalton, one of our most respected NHS chief executives, to take negotiations forward on behalf of the NHS. Further progress has been made under Sir David’s leadership, particularly in areas relating to safety and training. However, despite agreeing at ACAS to negotiate on the issue of weekend pay rates, Sir David Dalton has advised us that the BMA has refused to discuss a negotiated solution on Saturday pay. In his letter to the Secretary of State last week, Sir David stated: "Given that we have made such good progress over the last 3 weeks—and are very nearly there on all but the pay points—it is very disappointing that the BMA continues to refuse to negotiate on the issue of unsocial hours payment. I note that in the ACAS agreement of 30 November, both parties agreed to negotiate on the number of hours designated as plain time and I hope that the BMA will still agree to do that." The Government are clear that our door remains open for further discussion, and we continue to urge the BMA to return to the table. Regrettably, the BMA is instead proceeding with strike action over a 24-hour period from 8 am this Wednesday. Robust contingency planning has been taking place to try to minimise the risk of harm to the public, but I regret to inform the House that the latest estimates suggest that 2,884 operations have been cancelled I hope that hon. Members from both sides of the House will join me in urging the BMA to put patients first, call off its damaging strike and work with us to ensure we can offer patients consistent standards of care every day of the week.
Junior Doctors’ Contract Negotiations — House of Commons, 2016-02-08
Topic: Health
Sarah James (Wollaston) (Conservative, Centre-right): Under the current contract, too many junior doctors are forced to work excessive hours and are overstretched during the hours they work. Will the Minister, having set out that the hours will be reduced, reassure the House about what measures will be put in place to make sure that managers do not let this slip and that we do not return to the days of overworked junior doctors?
Junior Doctors’ Contract Negotiations — House of Commons, 2016-02-08
Topic: Health
Benedict Gummer (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend is right that new measures have been introduced in the proposed contract. A new guardian role, which was proposed by NHS Employers, will help to protect the hours of junior doctors in individual trusts. That has been a point of success in the negotiation between the BMA and NHS Employers. A new fines system, which is not currently in place, will penalise trusts and ensure that the moneys that are generated by the fines go towards enhancing the general wellbeing and training of doctors within those trusts.
Junior Doctors’ Contract Negotiations — House of Commons, 2016-02-08
Topic: Health
Benedict Gummer (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Lady speaks from experience, and rightly points to the fact that avoidable mortality that is attributable to weekends is different from mortality at weekends—the Secretary of State has been clear about that in his public statements. However that gap does exist, as the hon. Lady knows, and Professor Sir Bruce Keogh was clear in his statements that there is an avoidable rate of mortality. He stated: "There is an avoidable ‘weekend effect’ which if addressed could save lives. This is something that we as clinicians should collectively seek to solve. It also strengthens the moral and professional case for concerted action." The way in which the hon. Lady characterised the discussions in September, October and November is not quite right. We implored the BMA to come and talk; I personally had those discussions with leaders of the BMA, and they refused to do so. It was only when they came and talked to us that we made substantive progress The hon. Lady is right to raise these issues, and we wanted to discuss such matters with the BMA. One issue was protection against excess hours, but we had no counterparty with whom to negotiate. Since we have had that counterparty, we have made good moments of progress, and the result is the guardian position, which she welcomed in another place. The guardian will be able to levy fines, and those fines will be remitted to the guardian. I hope—and indeed expect—that process to reduce the excess hours that we still see in a small minority of positions. We must get away from the perverse incentives for trusts and a small minority of doctors that mean that unsafe working hours are perpetuated Of course we all regret the course that this dispute has taken, but it would not have done so had the BMA taken a responsible position from the beginning. If people lie to their members and say that they will have their pay cut and their hours raised, of course doctors will be angry—all of us would be. The fact is that that was never true, but it has inflamed the situation. We could have had the kind of productive talks that we have had over the past three or four weeks back in August, September and October had we not had all the mess beforehand because of untruthful statements issued by the BMA.
Junior Doctors’ Contract Negotiations — House of Commons, 2016-02-08
Topic: Health
Helen Olivia Bicknell Whately (Conservative, Centre-right): The level of support among junior doctors for this pay dispute is at least in part because of longstanding dissatisfaction with the experience of being a junior doctor. Sir David Dalton recommended a review of those longstanding concerns in his recent letter. Do the Government intend to commission such a review?
Junior Doctors’ Contract Negotiations — House of Commons, 2016-02-08
Topic: Health
Benedict Gummer (Conservative, Centre-right): The Government will be looking at Sir David Dalton’s recommendation and acting on it. He is right to point to the fact that the 1999 contract is imperfect—it was agreed back in 2008 that it had many failings, and that something needed to be done to fix it. That contract in its generality has helped to contribute to the lowering of morale in the junior doctor workforce, which Sir David Dalton has recognised, as has the Secretary of State. It is not just the way in which training placements are made and a whole series of other problems with the contract; it is also the fact that people have to work for long periods of consecutive nights and days, all of which is reduced in the latest proposed contract.
Junior Doctors’ Contract Negotiations — House of Commons, 2016-02-08
Topic: Health
Andrew William Murrison (Conservative, Centre-right): I very much support the Government’s stance on junior doctors, while acknowledging that most doctors—junior and senior—work well beyond their contracted hours. Does the Minister agree that it is not junior doctors but their seniors, and seniors’ terms and conditions, who really set the tempo in our national health service?
Junior Doctors’ Contract Negotiations — House of Commons, 2016-02-08
Topic: Health
Benedict Gummer (Conservative, Centre-right): My hon. Friend also speaks from experience. We have said right from the beginning that reform of consultants’ and junior doctors’ contracts will be critical in delivering seven-day services. On consultants’ contracts, it is important to make sure that consultants are providing clinical cover over weekends, not just for the benefit of patients but for juniors, who are often covering rotas without clinical cover from consultants with and to whom they might wish to confer and refer.
Junior Doctors’ Contract Negotiations — House of Commons, 2016-02-08
Topic: Health
Benedict Gummer (Conservative, Centre-right): The right hon. Gentleman will know that, numerically, the previous Labour Government had far more scraps with the BMA than the coalition Government and this Government have achieved so far. He will know that it is a mark of all Health Secretaries to have disputes of one kind or another with the BMA. The Secretary of State will be here tomorrow, since the right hon. Gentleman asks, to answer oral Health questions.
Junior Doctors’ Contract Negotiations — House of Commons, 2016-02-08
Topic: Health
Benedict Gummer (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Lady says the junior doctors in her constituency had legitimate concerns. They did. Every single one has now been answered in the negotiations between Sir David Dalton and his predecessors apart from one, and that is the one the BMA refuses to open negotiations on, despite having promised to do so in November last year. Yes, our door remains open, but the BMA has first to agree to talk to us, which it is again refusing to do.
Junior Doctors’ Contract Negotiations — House of Commons, 2016-02-08
Topic: Health
Alexander John Gervase Chalk (Conservative, Centre-right): Junior doctors in Cheltenham are some of the most dedicated and hard-working people anywhere in our local community. It is therefore a concern to me that some have cited information from the BMA suggesting that the Government are proposing a pay cut. Will the Minister make the position crystal clear? Is that right?
Junior Doctors’ Contract Negotiations — House of Commons, 2016-02-08
Topic: Health
Benedict Gummer (Conservative, Centre-right): The right hon. Gentleman will know that we are looking at the contracts for GPs, consultants and junior doctors: they are of a piece. We cannot see one clinical group in isolation, when they work together. He should know, therefore, that in concluding discussions with junior doctors, consultants and GPs, we need to ensure that we give hospitals and primary care settings the ability to roster staff consistently through seven days of the week.
Junior Doctors’ Contract Negotiations — House of Commons, 2016-02-08
Topic: Health
Maria Colette Caulfield (Conservative, Centre-right): I have met junior doctor colleagues over the last few weeks and months, and I know that many of them are cautious about the new contract and that strike action is the absolute last resort for them that they would rather not take. I met one of my constituents from Polegate this morning whose operation is going to be cancelled this week, thanks to the strike action. I welcome the Minister’s comment that the door is still open even at this late hour to call off the strike. Would he find it helpful if the shadow Secretary of State also condemned the strike and asked the doctors to call it off, so that patients do not become the real losers in this dispute?
Junior Doctors’ Contract Negotiations — House of Commons, 2016-02-08
Topic: Health
Benedict Gummer (Conservative, Centre-right): I entirely agree with the hon. Lady about the passion and dedication of junior doctors—and never once has the Secretary of State or I questioned that. What we have questioned are the tactics of the BMA’s leadership. I happen to agree with her, too, about her previous employer Unison. I have constructive relationships with that union. I disagree with it, and it with me—often—but we agree on many things and have a straightforward relationship. I am afraid that it is difficult to do business with the BMA, however, when it promises to talk about one thing and then refuses to do so a few weeks later, when it refuses to come to the negotiating table for months, and when it misleads its members in a way that I do not think Unison has ever done.