c. 91) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that repealed enactments from 1742 to 1830 which had ceased to be in force or had become unnecessary.

The act was intended, in particular, to facilitate the preparation of the revised edition of the statutes, which was then in progress.

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.

[1] In 1806, the Commission on Public Records passed a resolution requesting a report on the best way to reduce the volume of the statute book.

[2] From 1810 to 1825, The Statutes of the Realm was published, providing for the first time an authoritative collection of acts.

[2] In 1816, both Houses of Parliament passed resolutions declaring it "very expedient" to commission an eminent lawyer, assisted by 20 clerks, to compile a digest of the statutes.

[3] At the start of the parliamentary session in 1853, Lord Cranworth announced his intention to improve statute law.

[2] The Board issued three reports, recommending the establishment of a permanent body for statute law reform.

An alternative approach—prioritizing the repeal of obsolete laws before consolidation—was proposed by Peter Locke King, a MP, who strongly criticized the Commission's expenditure and lack of progress.

Wood to expurgate the statute book of all acts that, while not expressly repealed, were no longer in force, working backward from the present time.

[10] The bill had its first reading in the House of Commons on 15 July 1873,[11] introduced by the Attorney General, John Coleridge MP.

Section 1 of the act also ensured that repealed enactments that have been incorporated into other laws would continue to have legal effect in those contexts.