What term describes a bill that has passed through parliament after its third reading?

A bill that has passed through parliament after its third reading is referred to as a statute. Once a bill successfully goes through all legislative processes, including debates, amendments, and votes, it receives royal assent and becomes law. At this point, it transitions from being a proposal to being an official piece of legislation that holds legal authority. Statutes are fundamental to the legal framework within which societies operate and are essential for establishing rules, regulations, and obligations.

The other terms do not accurately represent this legal process. Regulations are rules made by executive authorities under the authority of a statute; by-laws are laws made by local government bodies pertaining to specific local issues; and policies refer to guiding principles that dictate how various issues should be addressed but do not have the formal legal status that statutes possess. Only a bill that passes through all parliamentary stages and receives royal assent can be correctly described as a statute.