Roundup: Australian PM paves way for historic double dissolution election

Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull called the parliament back from a break on Monday in an unprecedented move which paves the way for an early, double dissolution election.

Turnbull said the parliament would be recalled early in order to pass two key pieces of legislation before the federal budget is handed down early on May 3. If it fails to do so, the premier said he would exercise his right to call a double dissolution election for July 2.

A double dissolution election results in the entire Senate being up for election, not just half which occurs in a regular federal election. The double dissolution could result in a number of senators losing their seats to other candidates - something the government hopes will happen so it gets the numbers to pass the Australian Building and Construction Commission (ABCC) bill when the parliament resumes.

According to Turnbull, if the ABCC bill is not passed through the Senate before the budget, the Australians would head to the polls.

If, however, the bill - which would reinstate a building industry watchdog and raise the levels of accountability - passes, Turnbull said there would be no need for a double dissolution.

"We are calling it because we need to secure support from the Australian people for important economic reforms," Turnbull told the press on Monday.

"These reforms will ensure unions are more accountable, transparent and managed in the same way public companies are managed. That's what the bill aims to do."

The prime minister had threatened a double dissolution election for months, but cross-bench senators had declared they would not bow to the threat.

Turnbull followed through and told the press it was time for the Senate to stop playing "games."

"The time for game playing is over. Parliament has been recalled to consider the ABCC and Registered Organizations Bills," he tweeted on Monday.

Turnbull said the ABCC bill was an important step forward economically, and said he was happy to call the parliament back into session to pass the bills before an election.

"(When we had) a strong construction industry watchdog - the ABCC - there was a significant increase in productivity. Since it was abolished by Labor the level of disputation has increased, lawlessness has spiked," Turnbull said.

"Now is the time for the Senate to vote to support the ABCC and Registered Organizations bills. If it passes, the election will be held at a later date."

Despite the announcement, cross-bench senators are still skeptical of the legislation's wording, with Liberal Democrat Senator David Leyonhjelm telling the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) that it was a "poor" bill that was in need of amendments.

The coalition requires the support of at least six cross-bench senators in order for the bill to pass.

For the government, the advantage of calling the parliament back into session and threatening a double dissolution is that even if the legislation is not approved after an election, Turnbull has the option to call a joint sitting of the house, which would swing the numbers in favor of the government.

Australia's prliament has had just one joint sitting in its history - in 1974 when all six deadlocked bills were passed by the majority.

The ABCC bill is not a currently "trigger" for a double dissolution, but it is a major basis of Turnbull's "ideas boom" election campaign. It would only become a trigger if it is rejected by the Senate for a second time.

By calling the parliament back to debate both bills before the budget, Turnbull gets his way either by the Senate passing the bill, or, if it is rejected, it then becomes a trigger allowing him to call a double dissolution election.

Turnbull said he "makes no apology for interrupting the Senators' seven weeks of break," adding that it would have three weeks before the budget on May 3 to "pass these important laws."

If the Senate fails to do so, the prime minister said, then a double dissolution election will be called for July 2. Endit