Part of Extradition Bill – in a Public Bill Committee am 5:00 pm ar 9 Ionawr 2003.
Bob Ainsworth
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department
5:00,
9 Ionawr 2003
The Conservative Amendment No. 32 would require the Secretary of State rather than the judge to evaluate the worthiness of the undertakings given by the requesting state that, if the person was extradited, the death penalty would not be imposed or carried out.
It is unlikely that the Clause will ever be used, because no EU state currently operates the death penalty, and, as I have said repeatedly, the Government have no plans to add any non-EU countries to category 1 other than Iceland and Norway, because of the special arrangements that those countries have with the EU.
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.
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.
