Dissolution of parliament is the formal ending of a parliamentary term before a new general election, which in most parliamentary systems the head of state carries out on the advice of the prime minister, whether to call an early election at a moment of the government's choosing or because the government has lost a vote of no confidence and cannot continue. The rules governing when and how a parliament can be dissolved, and whether the decision rests with the prime minister, the legislature itself or the head of state's own discretion, vary significantly between parliamentary democracies and have themselves been the subject of constitutional reform, as in the United Kingdom's move from the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 back to a prerogative-style dissolution power in 2022.
Facts
Origin YearThe UK's Dissolution and Calling of Parliament Act 2022 restored the prerogative-style power to dissolve Parliament, repealing the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 regime. Founding ContextThe power to dissolve a parliament and call a fresh election exists so a legislature that has lost the ability to govern, whether through a fixed electoral calendar, a collapsed governing majority, or a deliberate search for a new mandate, can be replaced without waiting out its full term. Where the power sits, with the head of state, the head of government, or the legislature itself, and how freely it can be used, varies considerably between constitutional systems. 1 Cross-Tradition Connections
Associated With
UK parliamentary dissolution moved from the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 back to a prerogative-style power under the Dissolution and Calling of Parliament Act 2022.
Part Of
Dissolving parliament to trigger a general election, whether at the government's chosen moment or after losing confidence, is a defining feature of parliamentary systems.
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