Part of the debate – in the House of Commons at on 15 March 1929.
Mr William Kelly
, Rochdale
The Under-Secretary has stated that these proposals have been unanimously agreed to by the representatives of the two sides of the industry, and, in view of that statement, I have no objection to the Second Reading of the Bill. I am, however, anxious to know what is meant by the substitution of 24 months for 12 months in Sub-section (2) of Clause 1. It increases the penalty.
The Second Reading is the most important stage for a Bill. It is when the main purpose of a Bill is discussed and voted on. If the Bill passes it moves on to the Committee Stage. Further information can be obtained from factsheet L1 on the UK Parliament website.
A parliamentary bill is divided into sections called clauses.
Printed in the margin next to each clause is a brief explanatory `side-note' giving details of what the effect of the clause will be.
During the committee stage of a bill, MPs examine these clauses in detail and may introduce new clauses of their own or table amendments to the existing clauses.
When a bill becomes an Act of Parliament, clauses become known as sections.
