– in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 8 June 1964.
Lords Amendment: In page 31, line 41, at end insert:
(4) The Secretary of State may by order repeal or amend any provision in any local
Act, including an Act confirming a provisional order, or in any instrument in the nature of a local enactment under any Act, where it appears to him that that provision is inconsistent with, or has become unnecessary or requires modification in consequence of, any provision of this Act or corresponds to any provision repealed by this Act; and any statutory instrument made under this subsection shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.
Mr Henry Brooke
, Hampstead
I beg to move, That this House doth agree with the Lords in the said Amendment.
This new subsection is designed to give the Secretary of State a general power to repeal and amend local Acts in consequence of the provisions of this Bill.
As the House will appreciate, much of the existing law about police administration was laid down somewhat sketchily in nineteenth century statutes which are repealed by Section 10 of the Bill. From time to time, not unnaturally, these general provisions of the last century were filled out by the provisions of local Acts which may now be unnecessary or need modification if the Bill becomes law.
It is desirable that there should be power in the Secretary of State to carry out this tidying-up operation. I would like to give an assurance that the local authority which promoted the local Act will in all cases be consulted before the Secretary of State makes an Order under this new power.
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.
Secretary of State was originally the title given to the two officials who conducted the Royal Correspondence under Elizabeth I. Now it is the title held by some of the more important Government Ministers, for example the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.
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.
