bring an important issue before the nation. Opposition parties can bring down the government by passing a motion of no confidence, 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. Practice by country United Kingdom In the United Kingdom, a writ is the only way of holding an election for the House of Commons. When the government wants to, or is required to, dissolve Parliament, a writ of election is drawn up for each constituency in the UK by the clerk of the Crown in Chancery. They are then formally issued by the monarch. (When the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 was in effect, writs were issued by the lord chancellor.) Where a single constituency becomes vacant, a writ is issued by the speaker of the House of Commons to trigger the by-election for that seat. After the election has been held in a constituency, the acting returning officer must write the name of the winning candidate on the writ and return it to the clerk of the Crown. Canada In Canada, a writ is the only way of holding an election for the House of Commons. When the government wants to or, is required to, dissolve Parliament, a writ of election is drawn up for each riding (electoral district) in Canada by the chief electoral officer. They are then formally issued by the governor general. Similarly where a single riding becomes vacant, a writ is issued to trigger the by-election for that seat. A writ with the name of the successful candidate noted on its back will be returned to the chief electoral officer. "Dropping the writ" An informal term used in Canada to describe the issuing of writs of election is "dropping the writ". The usage of the word drop in this context is likely derived from the phrase "draw up". 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 term has been recorded in academic text. Australia In Australia, writs for election are issued by the governor-general for the House of Representatives within 10 days of the dissolution or expiration of the House and by the state governors for the election of senators for their