In the United Kingdom,
acts of Parliament remain in force until expressly repealed.
Blackstone's
Commentaries on the Laws of England, published in the late
18th-century, raised questions about the system and structure of the
common law and the poor drafting and disorder of the existing
statute book. In 1806, the
Commission on Public Records passed a resolution requesting the production of a report on the best mode of reducing the volume of the statute book. From 1810 to 1825,
The Statutes of the Realm was published, providing for the first time the authoritative collection of acts. In 1810, the Lords of the Treasury asked
Nicholas Jickling to produce a
Digest of the Laws of the Customs, which was published in 1815, numbering 1,375 pages from the earliest period to
53 Geo. 3. This Digest was continuously published to bring the state of the law up to date to the end of every session. In 1814, the
Commission of Public Records published their 14th Report, recommending consolidation of the statute law. In 1822, the
Navigation and Commerce Act 1822 (
3 Geo. 4. c. 43) was passed to encourage shipping and navigation. The
Repeal of Acts Concerning Importation Act 1822 (
3 Geo. 4. c. 41) and the
Repeal of Acts Concerning Importation (No. 2) Act 1822 (
3 Geo. 4. c. 42) were passed at the same time to repealed related inconsistent or obsolete enactments. In 1823, the
Customs and Excise Act 1823 (4 Geo. 4. c. 23) was passed, which consolidate the several
Boards of Customs, and also, the several
Boards of Excise across the United Kingdom. By a letter dated 9 August 1823,
Secretary to the Treasury,
John Charles Herries , asked J. D. Hume, Controller of the
Port of London, to "undertake the preparation of a general law, or set of laws, for the consolidation of the customs of the United Kingdom". In 1826, eleven customs acts were passed to consolidate to all practical purposes the whole statute law of the customs by repealing the numerous existing customs statutes and replace them with new, more clearly written laws. • To repeal the several Laws relating to the Customs: • For the Management of the Customs • For granting Duties of Customs • For the Warehousing of Goods • For the Registering of British Vessels • For the Encouragement of British Shipping and Navigation • To regulate the Trade of British Possessions Abroad • To grant certain Bounties and Allowances of Customs • For the Regulating the Trade of the Isle of Man • For the Prevention of Smuggling • For the general Regulation of the Customs == Passage ==