Births and Deaths Registration (Amendment) Bill [H.L.]

House of Lords

Session 1998-99
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Births and Deaths Registration (Amendment) Bill [H.L.]

This is the Births and Deaths Registration (Amendment) Bill [H.L.], as introduced in the House of Lords on 17 February 1999.

EXPLANATORY NOTES
Explanatory Notes to the Bill, prepared by the Office for National Statistics with the consent of Lord Elis-Thomas, the Peer in charge of the Bill, are published separately as HL Bill 22—EN.

Births and Deaths Registration (Amendment) Bill [H.L.]

ARRANGEMENT OF CLAUSES

Clause

1. Entries in English and Welsh.

2. Certificates of prescribed particulars of births and deaths.

3. Supplementary.

SCHEDULE

    Consequential amendments.

A
B I L L
TO
Make further provision about the registration of births and deaths where particulars are given in Welsh as well as English and to make new provision about certificates of particulars of entries in registers of births and deaths.
BE IT ENACTED by the Queen's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:-

Entries in English and Welsh.     1. - (1) In the Births and Deaths Registration Act 1953, before section 25 insert-

"Bilingual register kept by Registrar General

Register of births and deaths in England of which particulars are given in Welsh.     24A. - (1) If the registrar for a sub-district in England receives a declaration or statement made under section 9 or 23A of this Act in Welsh (as well as in English) to a prescribed officer in Wales who could understand and write Welsh, he shall (as well as registering or re-registering the birth or death concerned) send the declaration or statement to the Registrar General.

    (2) The Registrar General shall keep at the General Register Office registers of live-births, still-births and deaths in which he shall enter in both English and Welsh the particulars contained in declarations and statements sent to him under subsection (1) of this section."

    (2) In that Act, after section 32 insert-

"Single language certified copies of bilingual entries.     32A. Where an entry has been made in any register in both English and Welsh, a certified copy of the entry provided under section 30, 31 or 32 of this Act may, if the person to whom it is provided so requests, consist of a copy of only the English or only the Welsh version of the entry."

Certificates of prescribed particulars of births and deaths.     2. For section 33 of the Births and Deaths Registration Act 1953 (short certificates of birth) substitute-

"Certificates of prescribed particulars in register.     33. - (1) Any person shall, on furnishing the prescribed information and on payment of such fee as may be specified, be entitled to obtain a certificate as to such of the particulars contained in any entry of a birth or death in a register as may be prescribed.

    (2) A certificate may be obtained-

(a) from the Registrar General if he has custody of the register or of a certified copy of the entry; and

(b) from a superintendent registrar or registrar if he has custody of the register.

    (3) A certificate shall be in the prescribed form and compiled in the prescribed manner.

    (4) In subsection (1) of this section "specified" means specified by order made by the Chancellor of the Exchequer; and an order under this subsection may make different provision in relation to different descriptions of certificates or provision limited to particular descriptions of certificates.

    (5) The power to make orders under subsection (4) of this section shall be exercisable by statutory instrument which shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament."

Supplementary.     3. - (1) The Schedule (which contains amendments of the Births and Deaths Registration Act 1953 consequential on sections 1 and 2) has effect.

    (2) Sections 1 and 2 and the Schedule shall come into force on such day as the Chancellor of the Exchequer may by order made by statutory instrument appoint; and different days may be appointed for different purposes.

    (3) This Act does not extend to Scotland or Northern Ireland.

    (4) This Act may be cited as the Births and Deaths Registration (Amendment) Act 1999.

S C H E D U L E

CONSEQUENTIAL AMENDMENTS

    1. The Births and Deaths Registration Act 1953 has effect subject to the following amendments.

    2. In section 10(1) (registration of father where parents not married), for "the registrar shall not enter in the register the name of any person" substitute "no person shall be registered".

    3. - (1) Section 10A (re-registration where parents not married) is amended as follows.

    (2) In subsection (1) (cases where registrar shall re-register), for "registrar shall re-register the birth" substitute "birth shall be re-registered".

    (3) After subsection (2) insert-

    "(3) Subsection (2) of this section shall not apply in relation to re-registration in the register of live-births kept by the Registrar General under section 24A of this Act."

    4. In section 13 (registration of name of child or of alteration of name), after subsection (1) insert-

    "(1A) If the child's birth has been registered in the register of live-births kept by the Registrar General under section 24A of this Act, he shall enter the name mentioned in the certificate in that register."

    5. In section 14 (re-registration of births of legitimated persons), after subsection (4) insert-

    "(4A) Where a birth is re-registered under this section in such circumstances as may be prescribed, provision may be prescribed for the making by the Registrar General of an entry in the register of live-births kept by him under section 24A of this Act."

    6. In section 14A (re-registration after declaration of parentage), after subsection (2) insert-

    "(3) Where a birth is re-registered under this section in such circumstances as may be prescribed, provision may be prescribed for the making by the Registrar General of an entry in the register of live-births kept by him under section 24A of this Act".

    7. - (1) Section 30 (indexes kept by Registrar General) is amended as follows.

    (2) In subsection (1A) (index of register kept under section 3A), for "register kept by him under section 3A" substitute "registers kept by him under sections 3A and 24A".

    (3) In subsection (2) (entitlement to search indexes and obtain copy of certified copy on payment), after "said certified copies" insert "or registers".

    (4) In subsection (3) (disapplication of section in relation to certified copies of entries in registers of still-births)-

(a) after "registers of still-births" insert "or to the register of still-births kept by the Registrar General under section 24A of this Act", and

(b) at the end insert "or in the register of still-births kept by him under section 24A of this Act."

    8. - (1) Section 34 (entry in register as evidence of birth or death) is amended as follows.

    (2) In subsection (2) (requirement that entry must have been signed to have evidential value), after "certified copy of a register," insert "or a certificate as to particulars contained in an entry of a birth or death".

    (3) In subsection (6) (copies provided by General Register Office to be stamped or sealed)-

(a) after "General Register Office" insert ", or any certificate given in that Office under section 33 of this Act,",

(b) after "of an entry", in the second place, insert ", or any certificate given under section 33 of this Act,", and

(c) after "no certified copy" insert "or certificate".

© Parliamentary copyright 1999
Prepared 18 February 1999