Orders of the Day — FOREIGN MARRIAGE BILL [Lords] – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 8 July 1947.
Amendment proposed, in page 3. line 25, at the end, to insert:
Provided that any reference to a member of the naval, military or air forces of His Majesty shall be construed as including a reference to a member of the said Forces raised in a Dominion who is temporarily attached under Subsection (2) of Section four of the Visiting Forces (British Commonwealth) Act, 1933. to a part of the said Forces raised in the United Kingdom."— [Mr. P. Noel-Baker.]
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.
