– in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 12 May 1947.
Mr Lewis Silkin
, Camberwell Peckham
12:00,
12 May 1947
I beg to move, in page 46, line 17, to leave out Subsection (3).
This Amendment and the succeeding Amendment—to leave out Subsection (6)—arise in consequence of the proposed abolition of the 1939 standard. On the assumption that later Amendments will be carried abolishing that standard, these Subsections become both unnecessary and inapplicable.
Mr William Morrison
, Cirencester and Tewkesbury
I am glad to see the disappearance of Subsection (3) because it is indeed seldom, even in Acts of Parliament, that one meets words of such utterly and completely baffling obscurity. It is worth while reading to the Committee the words with which hon. Members are so reluctantly parting:
So much of Subsection (2) of Section twenty-four of the Act of 1944 as provides for the application of Section fifty-seven of that Act in relation to compensation for loss sustained by the extinction of any right or the vesting of any apparatus under the said Section twenty-four shall not apply arid shall be deemed never to have applied to compensation for loss so sustained otherwise than by the diminution in value of an interest in land.
I hope the Committee understands what that means, but I have never been able to understand it, and for that reason I am very glad to see the last of words which do not contribute to the clarity of our legislation.
Mr Lewis Silkin
, Camberwell Peckham
I can understand the right hon. Gentleman's pleasure at parting with this Subsection because it was put in to correct an error in his own Act.
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.
As a bill passes through Parliament, MPs and peers may suggest amendments - or changes - which they believe will improve the quality of the legislation.
Many hundreds of amendments are proposed by members to major bills as they pass through committee stage, report stage and third reading in both Houses of Parliament.
In the end only a handful of amendments will be incorporated into any bill.
The Speaker - or the chairman in the case of standing committees - has the power to select which amendments should be debated.
