Controversial legislation that would have allowed adults in England and Wales with less than six months to live to opt for assisted dying has been thwarted – for now
A long campaign to legalise assisted dying has been thwarted after a controversial Bill got sunk in the House of Lords.
Campaigners voiced their bewilderment after legislation ran out of time despite being backed by MPs twice. Protesters gathered outside Parliament as the upper house debated a new law put forward by Labour MP Kim Leadbeater for the final time.
If passed, terminally ill people with less than six months to live would have been able to end their own lives with the help of doctors. But with limited time before the end of the Parliamentary session, peers sunk the proposed law change by putting forward hundreds of amendments.
This meant it could not be passed in time – but campaigners have vowed to fight on.
Speaking as the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill fell, Lord Charlie Falconer – who sponsored it in the Lords – said he felt “despondent”. The controversial legislation sparked a fierce debate, with Health Secretary Wes Streeting among those opposing it.
Lord Falconer said the Bill had not failed to finish its journey through the Lords due to a lack of time, but rather “because a small minority were not willing to cooperate, as we normally do, to ensure that there can be proportionate debate”.
He said supporters of the Bill felt let down and that peers have “not treated them properly”. And he said many terminally ill people and their relatives “who have shown such courage and forbearance” have been “utterly bewildered by the way we have behaved”.
Supporters said it would have offered a dignified and pain-free death. But opponents warned it could lead to people feeling pressured to end their lives and said they were concerned about safeguards.
Paralympian Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson said the Bill had failed because “there are too many gaps in it”. She said she felt there was “a lot of misunderstanding about what people might get” under a law change.
Lord Falconer told peers: “It is clear that the issue will not go away, nor should it, until it is resolved. Parliament can and must come to a decision. It is now for the other place to decide what we do next.”
The bill proposed allowing adults in England and Wales with fewer than six months to live to apply for an assisted death subject to the approval of two doctors and an expert panel. The Government remained neutral on the issue and MPs voted according to their consciences rather than along party lines.
Keir Starmer voted in favour while Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch voted against.