If the King failed to call Parliament, the Act required the Lord Chancellor to issue the writs, and failing that, the House of Lords could assemble and issue writs for the election of the House of Commons.

Clause 11 was unusual because it explicitly stated that this bill would receive the royal assent before the end of the parliamentary session.

At that time, bills did not customarily gain royal assent until after the end of the session.

The country now remained in a grip of constant election fever (ten elections in twenty years) and loyalties among MPs were difficult to establish, which increased partisanship and rivalry in Parliament.

This Act ushered in a period of greater stability in British politics, with long-lasting parliaments and governments typical throughout much of the 18th century.