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144:, held by those leaving the British armed forces. It also criminalised the use of false character statements by those seeking to join the armed forces and the making of such statements. The act was superseded in part by later legislation and there are no known prosecutions made under it. The act was repealed in 2008 following a recommendation by the
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on 22 June 1906, contains three sections. Section 1 criminalised the forging of discharge certificates of seamen or soldiers and also the impersonation of a holder of a certificate. The punishment stipulated by the act was a sentence of imprisonment (with or without hard labour) for a month or a
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Section 2 established an offence for any prospective member of the armed forces to use a forged character statement to enter the forces and for any person to create a false statement to support the entry of another into the forces. The penalty for this was a £20 fine.
211:. Its only outstanding effect was to criminalise the impersonation of a current or former member of the armed forces. This could also, where the intention was to make a gain or cause another a loss, be prosecuted as a fraud by false representation under the
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listed his period of service and reason for leaving the forces. They were their only means of explaining to a prospective employer their absence from the civilian workforce during their term of enlistment.
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fine of up to £20 for a first offence and a prison term of up to three months for subsequent offences. This section also defined the term "seaman" as any man who had served in
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Despite the act being repealed, its prohibition on civilians dressing as a member of the armed forces continues to be regularly featured in lists of "strange UK laws".
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recommended repeal of the entire act in its 18th Report on
Statute Law Repeals of January 2008. The act was subsequently repealed by parliament under the
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Although it remained in force, section 2 of the act was effectively superseded by offences created under the
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c. 69), of making a false statement to gain entry to the naval service to apply also to the naval reserve.
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234:, which included greater penalties. Such an offence could also be prosecuted under the Fraud Act 2006.
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The act was passed at a time when there were many
British ex-servicemen seeking employment. A veteran's
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Because the act was so little used and the offences prosecutable under other acts, the
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362:"10 bizarre laws you may have broken from flying a kite to handling a salmon"
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No prosecutions are known to have been made under any sections of the act.
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The Law
Commission and The Scottish Law Commission (January 2008).
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The
Section 1 offence of forging papers was repealed by the
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Section 3 of the act extended a previous offence, under the
388:"10 weird and wonderful UK laws that might surprise you"
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20th-century military history of the United
Kingdom
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310:"Seamen's and Soldiers' False Characters Act 1906"
134:Seamen's and Soldiers' False Characters Act 1906
22:Seamen's and Soldiers' False Characters Act 1906
245:, which received royal assent on 21 July 2008.
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451:Repealed United Kingdom Acts of Parliament
173:and "soldier" as "a man who has served in
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278:"Statute Law Repeals: Eighteenth Report"
415:"Spoooooooky laws still in place today"
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140:. The act criminalised the forgery of
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386:Leggat, Iain (19 February 2021).
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243:Statute Law (Repeals) Act 2008
104:Statute Law (Repeals) Act 2008
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230:(for the Royal Navy) and the
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366:Braintree and Witham Times
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171:His Majesty's naval forces
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190:Naval Enlistment Act 1853
34:United Kingdom Parliament
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164:The act, which received
61:Territorial extent
232:Reserve Forces Act 1996
393:Yorkshire Evening Post
336:"Five strange UK laws"
175:His Majesty's military
228:Armed Forces Act 1966
316:. British Government
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314:Legislation.gov.uk
224:Air Force Act 1955
136:was an act of the
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194:16 & 17 Vict.
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111:Status: Repealed
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88:21 July 2008
80:22 June 1906
76:Royal assent
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371:24 December
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152:Description
99:Repealed by
440:Categories
252:References
42:Long title
55:1906 c. 5
85:Repealed
51:Citation
203:Repeal
281:(PDF)
70:Dates
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226:and
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