The government assumes a caretaker role today as it no longer has the ability, through Parliament, to legislate.

The Constitution lays down, however, that if between the dissolution of Parliament and the general election an emergency arises that, in the opinion of the Prime Minister, justifies the recall of Parliament, the President may, by proclamation, summon the Parliament that has been dissolved to meet.

This morning’s request by the Prime Minister for the President to dissolve Parliament was actually one of the few times when the President could decide not to heed the premier’s advice.

The Constitution provides that: “If the Prime Minister recommends a dissolution and the President considers that the Government of Malta can be carried on without a dissolution and that a dissolution would not be in the interests of Malta, the President may refuse to dissolve Parliament.”

Parliament, unless sooner dissolved, shall continue for five years from its first sitting “and shall then stand dissolved”.

However, when Malta is at war, Parliament may extend its five-year life by not more than 12 months at a time for up to five years.

Incidentally, the Constitution lays down that the House of Representatives has to hold its first sitting within two months after the official publication of the election results, and the House is required to meet at least once a year (sittings are actually held three times a week).

A general election must be held within three months of the dissolution of Parliament. The Constitution does not establish a minimum period within which an election has to be held after the dissolution of Parliament. That is established through the timelines set for the various stages of the electoral process in the General Elections Act. (The shortest electoral campaign in recent years was that of 1992, which took just 32 days. A general election has to be held on a Saturday).