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1 October 2015 — The Smoke Free (Private Vehicles) Regulations 2015 comes into force, prohibiting any person from smoking in any enclosed private vehicle when another person under the age of 18 is present.
2 October 1950 — Legal Aid is introduced in Britain under the Legal Aid and Advice Act 1949.
3 October 1959 — Postcodes were introduced in Britain.
4 October 1829 — John Thompson of London designed the first greeting card.
5 October 1967 — A court has, for the first time, accepted a 'majority verdict,' following the enactment of the Criminal Justice Act 1967. This legislation permits convictions even when a jury cannot reach a unanimous decision.
6 October 1939 — Adolf Hitler denies any intention to start a war against Britain or France.
7 October 1920 — Women became eligible for admission at Oxford University and are given the right to take degrees.
8 October 1967 — The breathalyser is introduced following the Road Safety Act 1967, measuring a person’s blood alcohol concentration at the roadside.
9 October 1962 — Uganda proclaimed independence from Britain under the Uganda Independence Act 1962.
10 October 1988 — Igor Judge is sworn in as a High Court Judge, becoming known as Justice Judge.
11 October 1966 — Post Office announces that all homes and business addresses will be allocated postcodes.
12 October 1492 — Christopher Columbus completes his journey across the Atlantic Ocean, arriving in the “New World”.
13 October 1884 — Greenwich was designated as the universal prime meridian of longitude, serving as the reference point for standard time calculations worldwide.
14 October 1586 — Mary Queen of Scots went on trial for alleged conspiracy against Elizabeth I.
15 October 1961 — Amnesty International, a human rights organisation, is established in London
16 October 1834 — The original Houses of Parliament are almost destroyed in a fire.
17 October 1855 — Sir Harry Bessemer patents a steel-making process.
18 October 1945 — An indictment has been filled, setting in motion the Nuremberg War Trial Crimes against nazi leaders.
19 October 1914 — Wartime licensing laws came into operation, premises having to close at 10 p.m, as stated in the Defence of the Realm Act.
20 October 1988 — A new law was announced regarding a suspect’s right to remain silent so that remaining silent could be used for an incrimination. In 1994, the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act was passed, stating that a court can draw an adverse inference from a defendant’s silence in certain circumstances.
21 October 1958 — The first women peers were allowed into the House of Lords, following the Life Peerages Act 1958.
22 October 1910 — Doctor Hawley Crippen is convicted after poisoning his wife Cora. See R v Crippen [1911] 1 K.B. 149
23 October 1991 — R v R [1991] UKHL 12 is decided, determining that under English criminal law, it is a crime for a husband to rape his wife.
24 October 1964— Malta gains independence from Britain. See Malta Independence Act 1964.
25 October 1968 — Race Relations Act 1968 comes into force, making it illegal to refuse housing, public services or employment to a person on the grounds of colour, race, ethnic or national origins.
26 October 1999 — House of Lords votes to remove the entitlement of most of the hereditary Peers to sit and vote in the House of Lords, culminating in the House of Lords Act 1999.
27 October 1967 — The Abortion Act 1967 is passed, allowing abortions for medical reasons.
28 October 1971 — HoC voted for entry into the European Economic Community with a 112 majority.
29 October 1929 — Black Tuesday happens, setting in motion a chain of events that led to the Great Depression, a severe global economic downturn
30 October 1485 — Henry Tudor, founder of the Tudor dynasty, is crowned King Henry VII of England.
31 October 2019 — The UK was set to leave the EU on this date.