Wales and Berwick Act 1746
The
Wales and Berwick Act 1746 (20 Geo. II, c. 42) was an
act of the
Parliament of Great Britain explicitly expressing that all future laws applying to
England would likewise also be applicable to
Wales and
Berwick-upon-Tweed (historically a
royal burgh in
Scotland) unless the body of the law explicitly stated otherwise. Berwick remained a
county in its own right however, and was not included in
Northumberland for Parliamentary purposes until
1885. The act was repealed in
1967 with regard to Wales, by the
Welsh Language Act 1967.
The
Local Government Act 1972, which came into force on
April 1,
1974, explicitly stated that in future legislation "England" would consist of the 46 metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties established by the Act (which included Berwick), and that "Wales" would consist of the 8
Welsh counties established by the Act. This also had the effect of excluding
Monmouthshire from the definition of England, and including it in Wales.
The
Interpretation Act 1978 restated the provisions of the LGA 1972, with respect to legislation passed after April 1, 1974, and noted explicitly that in legislation passed before then, England included Berwick and Monmouthshire, and that in legislation prior to 1967 it still included Wales.