Legislation

Cracroft's Peerage
The Complete Guide to the British Peerage & Baronetage

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Legislation

An Act for Establishing the Coronation Oath, 1689

Act of Settlement, 1701

Titles Deprivation Act, 1917

Honours (Prevention of Abuses) Act 1925

Life Peerage Act, 1958

Peerage Act, 1963

This Act, sometimes referred to as "Mr Benn's Enabling Act", gave (a) hereditary peers the right to disclaim their peerages, and (b) Scottish peers and all peeresses in their own right the right to sit in the House of Lords. There have only been sixteen disclaimers of peerages under this Act. As the majority of disclaimers have been by peers wanting to sit or continue to sit in the House of Commons the House of Lords Act 1999 effectively made disclaimers under the Peerage Act 1963 unnecessary, although the 3rd Baron Silkin did chose to formally disclaim his peerage, as had his father before him, rather than simply cease using the title.

The sixteen disclaimers were:

31 Jul 1963 - Anthony Neal Wedgwood [Benn], 2nd Viscount Stansgate

31 Jul 1963 - John Edward Poynder [Grigg], 2nd Baron Altrincham

23 Oct 1963 - Alexander Frederick [Douglas-Home], 14th Earl of Home

20 Nov 1963 - Quintin McGarel [Hogg], 2nd Viscount Hailsham

16 Mar 1964 - Charles [FitzRoy], 5th Baron Southampton

7 Apr 1964 - William Adrian Larry [Collier], 4th Baron Monkswell

12 Jun 1964 - (John William) Maxwell [Aitken], 2nd Baron Beaverbrook

2 Jul 1964 - (Alexander) Victor Edward Paulet [Montagu], 10th Earl of Sandwich

23 Feb 1970 - Antony Claud Frederick [Lambton], 6th Earl of Durham

28 Nov 1971 - Alan Lindsay [Sanderson], 2nd Baron Sanderson of Ayot

18 May 1972 - Arthur [Silkin], 2nd Baron Silkin