argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Children in the Care System: Sibling Contact — House of Commons, 2020-03-04
Topic: Social Welfare
Victoria Grace Ford (Conservative, Centre-right): I shall come to the specifics just now This was why the Children and Families Act 2014 emphasised that contact should not directly undermine the welfare and safeguarding of children in care. Schedule 2 to the Act requires that local authorities promote contact between a looked-after child and any relative, friend or other person connected with the child as long as this is consistent with the child’s welfare and is reasonably practical. That includes siblings. Section 34(2) enables a court to make a contact order between a child in care and any named person. This may of course include—
Children in the Care System: Sibling Contact — House of Commons, 2020-03-04
Topic: Social Welfare
Victoria Grace Ford (Conservative, Centre-right): Just let me finish this sentence, if I may, as it will bring me to what I think the hon. Member wants me to say about what we are going to do next Section 34(2) enables a court to make a contact order between a child in care and any named person. This may of course include any siblings, whether or not they are also in the care system. As the hon. Member rightly said, during the passage of the Children and Social Work Bill in 2017, we committed to updating the Care Planning, Placement and Case Review (England) Regulations 2010. This would make explicit reference to contact with siblings who are not looked after, as well as those who are. We have begun an internal review of the regulations, and I am pleased to confirm to her, within my first few weeks in this job, that we intend to update the regulations before the end of this year, alongside implementing the Government’s response to the current consultation on unregulated provision.
Children in the Care System: Sibling Contact — House of Commons, 2020-03-04
Topic: Social Welfare
Victoria Grace Ford (Conservative, Centre-right): As the hon. Lady has said, the Government do not have statistics on that, but we are looking at reviewing the regulations and, as I have just said, sharing better practice We want children to experience stable care placements and consistent relationships, and we want them to be able to keep in touch with the people who are most important to them. We need to equip social workers with the skills and knowledge to make effective decisions on permanence and the importance of relationships. That is one reason why we have funded the development of continuous professional development resources focused on permanence, and this material is now available to the sector Enduring relationships are often what gives us the resilience that we all need when things go wrong, so the importance of maintaining contact with siblings and other trusted individuals cannot be overestimated—I understand that. Contact with siblings is the right thing to do when it is in the best interests of an individual child. This is the first time I have spoken in a debate as a Minister, so let me reassure the House that I am committed to securing the best possible outcomes for children and young people in care. I look forward to working across the Floor with Members who have such experience to make sure that these children are happy, and are able to have happy, stable and fulfilling lives Question put and agreed to.
New Homes: Carbon Emissions and Energy Efficiency — House of Commons, 2020-02-24
Topic: Environment
Christopher John Pincher (Conservative, Centre-right): Welcome back, Mr Speaker, and welcome particularly to our new Chaplain Homes account for about a fifth of emissions. Driving these down and improving energy efficiency are crucial to fulfilling our commitments to net zero carbon by 2050. We have committed to introducing a future homes standard by 2025, and we will respond shortly to the 3,000 or so responses to our consultation—it closed on 7 February—which proposes carbon emissions at least 75% lower from 2025.
New Homes: Carbon Emissions and Energy Efficiency — House of Commons, 2020-02-24
Topic: Environment
Harriett Mary Morison Baldwin (Conservative, Centre-right): I congratulate my right hon. Friend on his appointment to this absolutely crucial role. Does he agree that one of the best ways to prevent carbon emissions is to make sure that the ancient woodland we have in this country is protected when new homes are allocated? Would he support the Save Tiddesley Wood campaign outside Pershore, which wants to make sure that new homes are not built too close to it?
New Homes: Carbon Emissions and Energy Efficiency — House of Commons, 2020-02-24
Topic: Environment
Christopher John Pincher (Conservative, Centre-right): We have a manifesto commitment to more tree-lined streets. I would point my hon. Friend to the new Environment Bill, which will be coming forward. However, she is quite right: we do need to have green spaces and to maintain our ancient woodland. We all want to live in a nice and beautiful environment, and that is certainly something a Conservative party in government will hope to achieve.
New Homes: Carbon Emissions and Energy Efficiency — House of Commons, 2020-02-24
Topic: Environment
Christopher John Pincher (Conservative, Centre-right): I think that a target of reducing emissions by 75% from 2025 is ambitious. It is very clear that the more stringent targets we are setting mean that it may not be necessary for councils to set different local standards. We have had a consultation, which closed on 7 February. More than 3,000 submissions were made to the consultation from big builders to think-tanks to local authorities, and we shall certainly be listening to that and taking it into account.
Rough Sleeping — House of Commons, 2020-02-24
Topic: Social Welfare
Caroline Ansell (Conservative, Centre-right): In Eastbourne, we will make very good use of our share of the £1.5 million from the Government to address this issue locally. Our winter night shelter, which is orchestrated by local churches and powered by volunteers and the generous support of local businesses such as Iron Maidens, will close its doors in a matter of days. Will my right hon. Friend meet me and other partners to look at what it would mean to seek to establish a shelter all year round?
Rough Sleeping — House of Commons, 2020-02-24
Topic: Social Welfare
Questions: Today, it has been reported that the problem of rough sleepers seeking shelter in bins has surged in the last five years, and according to the Health and Safety Executive, at least seven people have been killed after being accidentally tipped into bin lorries. The waste company, Biffa, recorded 109 near misses in the six months up to December. It is shocking that anyone should be so desperate that they would seek refuge in a bin. What is the Secretary of State doing to prevent these shocking statistics?
Robert Edward Jenrick (Conservative, Centre-right): I would be very happy to hear more about the specific cases that the hon. Lady raises. We have a strategy; we are investing more than ever before—we spent 30% more than we did in the previous financial year—and the initiatives that we are funding are working. I am pleased to say that we are seeing the first falls in rough sleeping for many years, but we are not complacent. We believe that this is an important challenge and it is one that the Prime Minister and I are committed to. We hope that when the statistics for the November count are published on Thursday, we will see a further fall and a further move in the right direction on this issue.
Local Government Finance Settlement — House of Commons, 2020-02-24
Topic: Social Welfare
Luke Anthony Hall (Conservative, Centre-right): This afternoon, we will debate and vote on the final local government finance settlement for 2020-21. The settlement is a huge investment in the sector, with a £1.5 billion boost for social care and the biggest year-on-year increase in spending power for a decade.
Local Government Finance Settlement — House of Commons, 2020-02-24
Topic: Social Welfare
Luke Anthony Hall (Conservative, Centre-right): I am glad that the hon. Member welcomes the increase in core spending power for councils around the country. I hope he will vote for it this evening to make sure that councils have the funding they need. This is a huge investment of £1.5 billion in social care. The Government are protecting council tax payers from excessive increases, as stated in our manifesto, and we will make sure that the 4.4% real-terms spending increase—£2.9 billion—goes straight to the frontline of local authorities.
Local Government Finance Settlement — House of Commons, 2020-02-24
Topic: Social Welfare
Daniel Robert Kawczynski (Conservative, Centre-right): Of all my discussions in my constituency, it is the funding for the local council that is of real concern to me. There is not sufficient funding coming through to help Shropshire Council deal with the huge increases in adult social care costs. In addition, Shrewsbury is flooded today, and the council is grappling with that situation as well. We need more money for our local councils.
Local Government Finance Settlement — House of Commons, 2020-02-24
Topic: Social Welfare
Luke Anthony Hall (Conservative, Centre-right): I was pleased to meet my hon. Friend and his local authority recently to discuss the important points he raises. He will of course know of the increased investment in his local authority to deal with social care, but he raises some serious points, and I look forward to ongoing discussions with him about how we tackle these issues in the weeks ahead.
Local Growth: Lincoln — House of Commons, 2020-02-24
Topic: Macroeconomics
Christopher John Pincher (Conservative, Centre-right): The Government are investing £155 million through the greater Lincolnshire local enterprise partnership’s growth deals. That includes £13 million for the Lincoln transport hub and £5 million for Lincoln medical school. Businesses are also supported by a local Lincoln growth hub. Additionally, Lincoln is set to benefit from the Government’s towns fund, which will provide up to £25 million of funding to support a thriving local economy in my hon. Friend’s beautiful city.
Local Growth: Lincoln — House of Commons, 2020-02-24
Topic: Transportation
Karl McCartney (Conservative, Centre-right): How significant and successful does the Minister foresee towns fund project bids of a transport type being in my constituency in enhancing the attractiveness of the city and benefiting all by putting residents first as well as those who work, set up businesses, study in and visit our lovely city and its environs?
Local Growth: Lincoln — House of Commons, 2020-02-24
Topic: Transportation
Christopher John Pincher (Conservative, Centre-right): I am obliged to my hon. Friend for his question, because strengthening transport connectivity is a principal focus for the towns fund and some £173,000 of capacity funding has been made available to his town deal board in Lincoln. Throughout the development of their investment plans, town boards should consider a range of interventions and commit investment to the priorities that drive growth and prosperity for their towns, and that, of course, includes transport.
Local Growth: Clacton — House of Commons, 2020-02-24
Topic: Social Welfare
Simon Richard Clarke (Conservative, Centre-right): I can certainly provide that reassurance. I have vivid memories of the Clacton by-election, when I first met my hon. Friend: I get all the best days out The Government are committed to levelling up all regions of our country. I speak as a proud north-easterner, but I am very conscious that deprivation is not limited to the north or to the midlands. It is clearly found in pockets throughout the country. I can absolutely reassure my hon. Friend that wherever those characteristics exist, we will be there to act.
Local Authority Spending: Value for Money — House of Commons, 2020-02-24
Topic: Government Operations
Luke Anthony Hall (Conservative, Centre-right): It is up to individual local authorities to secure value for money in their spending decisions and to set a balanced budget. They have a legal duty to deliver continuous improvement and to combine that with economy, efficiency and effectiveness. Local auditors scrutinise their accounts, and my Department has ensured that all council spending over £500 is published so that local voters and anyone else can check that their council is spending its money wisely.
Local Authority Spending: Value for Money — House of Commons, 2020-02-24
Topic: Government Operations
Luke Anthony Hall (Conservative, Centre-right): I thank my hon. Friend for his question. As I have said, local authorities are independent of central Government and responsible for their own decisions. He has raised serious concerns about Swale Council and of course, if he has evidence of financial irregularities, he should report it to the external auditors in the first instance. He may also wish to consider reporting it to the National Audit Office, and I would be happy to meet him to discuss the matter further.
Local Authority Spending: Value for Money — House of Commons, 2020-02-24
Topic: Macroeconomics
Luke Anthony Hall (Conservative, Centre-right): I will later today present our finance settlement, which the hon. Lady can vote for if she really thinks that there is not more money going to local authorities. There will be a 4.4% real-terms rise, a £1 billion social care grant, and a further £500 million that can be accessed, and the rise in council tax will be the lowest since 2016.
Local Authority Spending: Value for Money — House of Commons, 2020-02-24
Topic: Social Welfare
Theresa Anne Villiers (Conservative, Centre-right): Does the Minister agree that, with the enhanced spending power that local authorities are about to get, they should prioritise care for disabled children? The needs of such children are becoming more complex, and we want to do more as a society to support them, so that should be reflected in the decisions of local government.
Local Authority Spending: Value for Money — House of Commons, 2020-02-24
Topic: Government Operations
Luke Anthony Hall (Conservative, Centre-right): Of course, it is for local authorities to decide their individual local priorities, but my right hon. Friend is right to highlight the fact that the real-terms increase in core spending power for councils up and down the country means that money can be invested in the services that local authorities need the most.
Local Authority Spending: Value for Money — House of Commons, 2020-02-24
Topic: Macroeconomics
Luke Anthony Hall (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Lady raises a serious point about the effectiveness of some types of spending. We are working with the Treasury to review the Public Works Loan Board rates and flexibilities that local authorities have, and we will ensure that we keep her updated in due course on the progress of that review.
Local Authorities: Levels of Recycling — House of Commons, 2020-02-24
Topic: Environment
Questions: What recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on supporting local authorities to increase levels of recycling.
Luke Anthony Hall (Conservative, Centre-right): Our Department has regular conversations with DEFRA about how to support councils to meet the national recycling target of 65% by 2035. The Environment Bill introduces a range of measures to boost recycling, and we will continue to work to ensure that councils are able to play their full role.
Local Authorities: Levels of Recycling — House of Commons, 2020-02-24
Topic: Environment
Questions: What recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on supporting local authorities to increase levels of recycling.
Luke Anthony Hall (Conservative, Centre-right): I commend North West Leicestershire District Council on its work and note its recent "Recycle more…" plan. We recognise the importance of diverting food waste from landfill and will mandate weekly food waste collections in England through the Environment Bill, with DEFRA having committed to fully funding local authorities to do that in line with the new burdens doctrine.
Children in Temporary Accommodation — House of Commons, 2020-02-24
Topic: Social Welfare
Paul Christopher Maynard (Conservative, Centre-right): Local authorities across the UK are placing unaccompanied vulnerable young people in private children’s homes across Blackpool without notifying either Blackpool Council or other statutory local agencies. What steps can the Minister take to ensure that any local authority placing such people in my constituency first notifies both my council and the police that those children are there?
Children in Temporary Accommodation — House of Commons, 2020-02-24
Topic: Government Operations
Luke Anthony Hall (Conservative, Centre-right): Local authorities should make other local authorities aware of it when they are placing out of area; of course, we would always encourage local authorities to place in their area wherever possible. I am more than happy to speak to my hon. Friend about the specific example he raises.
Local Government Finance: Protection of Children — House of Commons, 2020-02-24
Topic: Social Welfare
Questions: What recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the local government finance settlement for local authorities to deliver their statutory duties for the protection of children.
Luke Anthony Hall (Conservative, Centre-right): This Government have recognised and responded to the pressures that local authorities are facing in delivering their statutory duty to protect children. For 2021, we are delivering an extra £1 billion for child social care and 4.4% into core spending power.
Local Government Finance: Protection of Children — House of Commons, 2020-02-24
Topic: Social Welfare
Questions: What recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the local government finance settlement for local authorities to deliver their statutory duties for the protection of children.
Luke Anthony Hall (Conservative, Centre-right): Of course, of the additional £1 billion of social care grant, Manchester City Council will have access to an additional £30 million to use on children’s social care in the coming year. As we set out in our manifesto, we are committed to undertaking a review of the care system that will allow us to go even further and to make sure that all care placements and settings provide children and young people with the support they need I understand the review also made recommendations about policing, and of course we will be starting to recruit 6,000 police officers in the coming year.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2020-02-24
Topic: International Affairs
Robert Edward Jenrick (Conservative, Centre-right): We will bring forward our proposals on the UK shared prosperity fund in due course. There is a significant sum in the European territorial co-operation fund—around £600 million—which I believe is what the hon. Gentleman speaks of. It is important that we get it right, so we will fully consult partners throughout the United Kingdom to ensure that we have a UK-wide fund that is committed to levelling up all parts of the country.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2020-02-24
Topic: Social Welfare
Questions: Would the Minister care to offer guidance on whether town fund boards should be populated by the usual suspects who have appeared on local enterprise partnership boards in the past decade, or does he feel that we should seek a fusion of new ideas and new faces?; Some 850,000 people are currently living with dementia, and that includes 2,000 people in my Oldham East and Saddleworth constituency. The typical care costs for somebody living with dementia are £100,000. In its Fix Dementia Care campaign the Alzheimer’s Society has called for an additional £8 billion to be spent on social care, including £2.65 billion specifically for dementia. What discussions has the Secretary of State had with the new Chancellor to ensure that that happens?
Luke Anthony Hall (Conservative, Centre-right): The Department has regular conversations with the Treasury about all sorts of matters. We are investing £1 billion in social care funding, and £500 million is available to local authorities. I am happy to meet the hon. Lady to discuss that campaign.
Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2020-02-24
Topic: Social Welfare
Questions: Would the Minister care to offer guidance on whether town fund boards should be populated by the usual suspects who have appeared on local enterprise partnership boards in the past decade, or does he feel that we should seek a fusion of new ideas and new faces?; Some 850,000 people are currently living with dementia, and that includes 2,000 people in my Oldham East and Saddleworth constituency. The typical care costs for somebody living with dementia are £100,000. In its Fix Dementia Care campaign the Alzheimer’s Society has called for an additional £8 billion to be spent on social care, including £2.65 billion specifically for dementia. What discussions has the Secretary of State had with the new Chancellor to ensure that that happens?; [R] Please may we have urgent reform of the planning system to prevent the preferential treatment given to Gypsies and Travellers to build in the countryside and to ensure that the planning system works equally for everyone?; Victims of domestic violence are often forced to choose between staying with an abusive partner or becoming homeless. What help are the Government providing to local authorities to ensure that no one is faced with that decision?
Luke Anthony Hall (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Lady raises an extremely serious and important matter. On 17 February we announced £16.6 million for 75 local authority projects, for the delivery of support to victims of domestic abuse and their children in safe accommodation, helping up to 43,000 survivors. The fund will allow local authorities to maintain existing services until the new duty comes into force in April 2021, subject to the successful passage of the domestic abuse Bill.