Act of Parliament | |
Long title | An Act to make provision for the holding of a referendum in Scotland on the establishment and tax-varying powers of a Scottish Parliament and a referendum in Wales on the establishment of a Welsh assembly; and for expenditure in preparation for a Scottish Parliament or a Welsh Assembly. |
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Citation | 1997 c. 61 |
Introduced by | Tony Blair, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom |
Territorial extent | United Kingdom |
Dates | |
Royal assent | 31 July 1997 |
Other legislation | |
Relates to | Scotland Act 1998 Government of Wales Act 1998 |
Status: Spent | |
Text of statute as originally enacted | |
Revised text of statute as amended |
The Referendums (Wales and Scotland) Act 1997 (c. 61) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which made legal provision for the holding of two non-binding referendums in both Scotland on the establishment of a democratically elected Scottish Parliament with tax-varying powers and in Wales on the establishment of a democratically elected Welsh Assembly. In an unusual move the referendums bill was introduced to the House of Commons by the then Prime Minister Tony Blair himself on 15 May 1997 just two weeks after the landslide Labour victory in the 1997 General Election and was the very first Government sponsored Bill to be presented to the Commons by the Blair Government of 1997–2007. The Act received royal assent on 31 July 1997 and became Spent upon the conclusion of both referendums.