Opening remarks by Dr Samlee Plianbangchang, Regional Director, WHO South-East Asia Region
A person found guilty of one or more offences (whether before or after the passing of this Act and whether in the United Kingdom or elsewhere), and sentenced or ordered to be imprisoned or detained indefinitely or for more than one year, shall be disqualified for membership of the House of Commons while detained anywhere in the British Islands or the Republic of Ireland in pursuance of the sentence or order or while unlawfully at large at a time when he would otherwise be so detained.
If a person disqualified by this Act for membership of the House of Commons is elected to that House his election shall be void; and if such a person is nominated for election as a member of that House his nomination shall be void.
If a member of the House of Commons becomes disqualified by this Act for membership of that House his seat shall be vacated.
This Act may be cited as the Representation of the People Act 1981 and shall be included among the Acts which may be cited together as the Representation of the People Acts.
The timetable in Rule 1 is amended as follows. In the entry relating to the delivery of nomination papers— In the entry relating to the making of objections to nomination papers the words from " and, if the last day " to " the day before " and the words from " (or if it is " to " on that day) " are omitted and at the end of the entry there are added the words " The foregoing provisions do not apply to objections made in pursuance of Rule 15A(2) ". In the entry relating to polling—
In Rule 2—
in paragraph (1) before " Sunday" there is inserted " Saturday "; and
after paragraph (2) there is inserted the following paragraph:—.
At the end of Rule 9 there is added the following:—
In Rule 13 the following is added at the end of paragraph (2):—and
After Rule 15 there is inserted the following:—15A
In the form of notice of parliamentary election in the Appendix for the words from " three in the afternoon " to " noon) " there are substituted the words " four in the afternoon ".
The following are hereby repealed (in addition to the words to be omitted in pursuance of the preceding paragraphs):—
in Rule 16, paragraph (b) of the proviso;
in Rule 39, paragraph (1)(b); and
in Rule 44, in paragraph (1)(f) the word " Jews ".