Part of Oral Answers to Questions — Foreign and Commonwealth Office – in the House of Commons at 7:00 pm on 22 January 2013.
Wayne David
Shadow Minister (Justice) (Political and Constitutional Reform)
7:00,
22 January 2013
Is my understanding correct that, under the Statute of Westminster 1931, although individual Parliaments in the respective states of the Commonwealth might give their assent in different ways, they do have to give their assent?
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.
