Double Dissolution - Trigger Event

Trigger Event

The double dissolution provision comes into play if the Senate and House twice fail to agree on a piece of legislation (in section 57 called "a proposed law", and commonly referred to as a trigger). The government can use this trigger, or any number of triggers, to recommend to the Governor-General to dissolve, pursuant to section 57 of the Constitution, the House and the entire Senate and issue writs for an election in which every seat in the Parliament is contested.

The conditions stipulated by section 57 are:

• the bill has originated in the House of Representatives
• a period of three months has elapsed between the two rejections of the bill by the Senate ("rejection" in this context can extend to the Senate's failure to pass the bill, or to the Senate passing it with amendments to which the House of Representatives will not agree)
• the second rejection has occurred in the same session as the first, or the subsequent session, but no later.

There is no similar provision for resolving deadlocks with respect to bills that have originated in the Senate and are blocked in the House of Representatives.

Though the constitution refers to the Governor-General doing certain things, convention dictates that the Governor-General act only on the advice of the Prime Minister. However, the Governor-General is not compelled to follow that advice. In these cases, he or she must be personally satisfied that the conditions specified in the constitution do indeed apply, and is entitled to seek additional information or advice before coming to a decision.