Law against dying voted Britain's most stupid
12:36PM Wednesday November 07, 2007
There are many strange and antiquated laws still in existence around the world but the British public has voted a law that prohibits dying in parliament the country's most absurd.
Close to 4000 people participated in a survey run by television channel UKTV Gold, which asked viewers to vote for the stupidest legislation from a shortlist of bizarre British laws, the Telegraph reports.
The law about expiring in parliament was easily the winner, pulling in over a quarter of all votes.
But there is a reason for the seemingly odd rule, according to Nigel Cawthorne, author of The Strange Laws of Old England.
He told the Telegraph: "Anyone who dies there is technically entitled to a state funeral. If they see you looking a bit sick they carry you out quickly."
In second place, with seven per cent, was a law that makes it an act of treason to place a postage stamp bearing the British monarch upside-down.
Third place was won by an edict from Liverpool, which states that public nudity is illegal in the city ... unless you are a clerk in a tropical fish shop.
However a spokesperson for Liverpool City Council told the Telegraph the "law" was a myth and had no basis in fact.
Respondents to the survey were also questioned about strange international laws, including statutes forbidding the practice of getting fish drunk in Ohio, driving while blindfolded in Alabama and naming a pig Napoleon in France.
A quick trawl through New Zealand laws failed to flag any which could immediately be construed as antiquated, though the law banning television advertising on Sunday mornings caused a few headaches for TV3 during last month's Rugby World Cup coverage.
The poll's most ridiculous laws and the percentage who voted for them
Most ridiculous British laws:
1. It is illegal to die in the Houses of Parliament (27%)
2. It is an act of treason to place a postage stamp bearing the British monarch upside-down (7%)
3. In Liverpool, it is illegal for a woman to be topless except as a clerk in a tropical fish store (6%)
4. Mince pies cannot be eaten on Christmas Day (5%)
5. In Scotland, if someone knocks on your door and requires the use of your toilet, you must let them enter (4%)
6. In the UK a pregnant woman can legally relieve herself anywhere she wants, including in a policeman's helmet (4%)
7. The head of any dead whale found on the British coast automatically becomes the property of the King, and the tail of the Queen (3.5%)
8. It is illegal not to tell the tax man anything you do not want him to know, but legal not to tell him information you do not mind him knowing (3%)
9. It is illegal to enter the Houses of Parliament in a suit of armour
10. In the city of York it is legal to murder a Scotsman within the ancient city walls, but only if he is carrying a bow and arrow (2%)
Most ridiculous foreign laws:
1. In Ohio, it is illegal to get a fish drunk (9%)
2. In Indonesia, the penalty for masturbation is decapitation (8%)
3. In Bahrain, a male doctor can only examine the genitals of a woman in the reflection of a mirror (7%)
4. In Switzerland, a man may not relieve himself standing up after 10pm (6%)
5. In Alabama, it is illegal to be blindfolded while driving a vehicle (6%)
6. In Florida, unmarried women who parachute on a Sunday could be jailed (6%)
7. In Vermont, women must obtain written permission from their husbands to wear false teeth (6%)
8. In Milan, it is a legal requirement to smile at all times, except funerals or hospital visits (5%)
9. In Japan, there is no age of consent (5%)
10. In France, it is illegal to name a pig Napoleon (4%)
- NZ HERALD STAFF
