Part of Extradition Bill – in a Public Bill Committee am 3:30 pm ar 14 Ionawr 2003.
Mr Nick Hawkins
Ceidwadwyr, Surrey Heath
3:30,
14 Ionawr 2003
I beg to move Amendment No. 163, in
Clause 126, page 62, line 14, leave out '91' and insert
'78, 91, 92 and 93'.
The amendment is brief. It adds extra clauses that the Secretary of State must consider. Subsection (5) currently provides that the Secretary of State must consider only clause 91. The Law Society of England and Wales supports our belief that the provisions under clauses 78, 92 and 93, as well as 91, should be included to ensure that the Secretary of State should consider all the possible bars to extradition. I am sure that the Minister's officials will have advised him of the reasons why the Secretary of State's consideration should be restricted to the bar in clause 91 relating to the death penalty.
Who, if not the Secretary of State, will consider the other bars to extradition? It seems to the Opposition and to the Law Society of England and Wales that Parliament can scrutinise this new extradition legislation only by the Secretary of State exercising his powers. He is accountable to Parliament and through Parliament to the citizens of his country. He should surely consider all the possible bars to extradition before he takes that decision.
We will listen with interest to what the Minister has to say. There may be a good reason why the Bill does not include these clauses. It would be much clearer if the Secretary of State considered all the bars to extradition. If he does, the Bill should include them.
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.
Ministers make up the Government and almost all are members of the House of Lords or the House of Commons. There are three main types of Minister. Departmental Ministers are in charge of Government Departments. The Government is divided into different Departments which have responsibilities for different areas. For example the Treasury is in charge of Government spending. Departmental Ministers in the Cabinet are generally called 'Secretary of State' but some have special titles such as Chancellor of the Exchequer. Ministers of State and Junior Ministers assist the ministers in charge of the department. They normally have responsibility for a particular area within the department and are sometimes given a title that reflects this - for example Minister of Transport.
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.
The Opposition are the political parties in the House of Commons other than the largest or Government party. They are called the Opposition because they sit on the benches opposite the Government in the House of Commons Chamber. The largest of the Opposition parties is known as Her Majesty's Opposition. The role of the Official Opposition is to question and scrutinise the work of Government. The Opposition often votes against the Government. In a sense the Official Opposition is the "Government in waiting".
