Dropping the writ is the informal term in Canada for a procedure in parliamentary countries, where the

head of government The head of government is the highest or the second-highest official in the executive branch of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presides over a cabinet, ...

(that is the

prime minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...

, premier or

chief minister A chief minister is an elected or appointed head of government of – in most instances – a sub-national entity, for instance an administrative subdivision or federal constituent entity. Examples include a state (and sometimes a union terri ...

, as the case may be) goes to the

head of state A head of state (or chief of state) is the public persona who officially embodies a state Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representatitve of its international persona." in its unity and l ...

and formally advises him or her to dissolve parliament.Haydn Watters
"Many writs, no 'dropping': What the election call actually means"
''CBC News'', September 11, 2019"Dropping the Writ: How A Federal Election is Called"
''studentvote.ca'', July 30, 2015 By convention, the head of state grants the request and issues writs of election for new members of parliament. The usage of the word "drop" in this context is likely derived from the phrase "draw up". In other parliamentary countries whose procedure is inspired by Westminster, the equivalent phrase is "issuing the writs". The head of state usually has the right to refuse the request, in which case the prime minister is required by convention or statute to resign. For example, in the case of a minority government, the head of state can deny the request for dissolution and ask the leader of another parliamentary party to form a government. In some cases, such as with the

President of Ireland The president of Ireland ( ga, Uachtarán na hÉireann) is the head of state of Ireland and the supreme commander of the Irish Defence Forces. The president holds office for seven years, and can be elected for a maximum of two terms.Constitu ...

, there are specific limitations on when a head of state can refuse the request. Even then, the right is rarely exercised, as it is likely to precipitate a

constitutional crisis In political science, a constitutional crisis is a problem or conflict in the function of a government that the political constitution or other fundamental governing law is perceived to be unable to resolve. There are several variations to this ...

(see, for example, the

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

King–Byng Affair of 1926).

Timing

Usually, according to parliamentary law, the head of government must regularly call an election but, it is otherwise within their discretion when to drop the writ, up to the time when the

parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...

has served its full term. At that point, an election must be called by issuing the writs. An exception to this principle is if a

fixed-term election A fixed-term election is an election that occurs on a set date, and cannot be changed by incumbent politicians other than through exceptional mechanisms if at all. Fixed-term elections are common for directly elected executive officers, such as d ...

law has been enacted. In some states and territories of Australia, such as

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

, and the

Australian Capital Territory The Australian Capital Territory (commonly abbreviated as ACT), known as the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) until 1938, is a landlocked federal territory of Australia containing the national capital Canberra and some surrounding townships. I ...

, it is normally required by law that the parliament must run its full term before issuing the writs. Early dissolutions are allowed by the Governor (NSW, Vic, SA) or federal Minister for Territories (ACT) only if certain objective criteria are met – in particular, if the parliament is unable to agree on the annual budget. Similarly, in

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

, it is the norm for parliament to run full term unless the prime minister cannot govern or feels they must bring an important issue before the nation. Opposition parties can bring down the government by passing a

motion of no confidence A motion of no confidence, also variously called a vote of no confidence, no-confidence motion, motion of confidence, or vote of confidence, is a statement or vote about whether a person in a position of responsibility like in government or m ...

, in which the prime minister is required by convention or specific law to either drop the writ or resign; parliaments do not have the right to force the prime minister to drop the writ.

Etymology

The phrase "drop the writ" is a debased form of the phrase "draw up the writ". Although it is still considered stylistically inappropriate by some, who assert that the correct phrase is
"the writs are issued"
or "the writs are drawn up," the phrase is nevertheless widely used i
edited copy

References

{{reflist Constitutional law Westminster system