What is the new assisted dying bill and who will qualify?
This week will see the return of the Assisted Dying Bill to parliament as it is published for the first time.
A debate on the bill later this month will be the first time the controversial issue has been voted on in the Commons in almost a decade.
If passed, the bill, introduced by Labour MP Kim Leadbeater, would give terminally ill people in England and Wales the right to choose to end their life.
She says hers is the only bill in the world with ‘three layers of scrutiny’ in the form of sign-off by two doctors and a High Court judge, and would offer the ‘safest choice’ for mentally competent adults at the end of their lives – also claiming it is capable of protecting against coercion.
Critics say the bill is being ‘rushed with indecent haste’ and claim MPs won’t have enough time to scrutinise the almost 40-page bill before the debate and vote on November 29, but Ms Leadbeater says there is ‘plenty of time’ to look at it.
MPs will be given a free vote on the highly contentious and emotive issue – here’s everything you need to know in the meantime.
What is Assisted Dying?
This, and the language used, varies depending on who you ask.
Pro-change campaigners Dignity in Dying say that assisted dying allows a person with a terminal condition the choice to control their death if they decide their suffering is unbearable.
They argue that, along with good care, dying people who are terminally ill and mentally competent adults deserve the choice to control the timing and manner of their death.
But the campaign group Care Not Killing uses the terms ‘assisted suicide’ and ‘euthanasia’ to refer to the practice, and argues that the focus should be on ‘promoting more and better palliative care’ rather than changing the law.
The group says legalising assisted dying could ‘place pressure on vulnerable people to end their lives for fear of being a financial, emotional or care burden upon others’ and argue the disabled, elderly, sick or depressed could be especially at risk.
What is the current law?
Assisted suicide is banned in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, with a maximum prison sentence of 14 years.
In Scotland, it is not a specific criminal offence but assisting the death of someone can leave a person open to being charged with murder or other offences.
What is happening at Westminster?
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer had said he was ‘committed’ to allowing a vote on legalising assisted dying should his party win the general election, and now Kim Leadbeater is bringing forward the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill.
If the bill passes the first stage in the Commons, it will go to committee stage where MPs can table amendments, before facing further scrutiny and votes in both the House of Commons and the House of Lords.
Sir Keir, who has previously supported assisted dying, said he will not pressure his MPs on the issue – on which the government has pledged to remain neutral.
Asked if he is going to vote in favour of the legislation, he said: ‘Look, it’s going to be a free vote and I mean that. It will be for every MP to decide for themselves how they want to vote.
‘I’m not going to be putting any pressure whatsoever on Labour MPs. They will make their own mind up, as I will be.
‘Obviously a lot will depend on the detail and we need to get the balance right but I’ve always argued there will need to be proper safeguards in place.’
Ms Leadbeater’s bill applies only to England and Wales.
What about the rest of the UK?
Scottish Liberal Democrat MSP Liam McArthur has published a bill which if passed, will allow people living in Scotland with a terminal illness to be given help to end their life.
It is the third attempt to make assisted dying legal in Scotland after two bills were previously voted down.
Meanwhile, any move to legalise assisted dying in Northern Ireland would have to be passed by politicians in the devolved Assembly at Stormont.
In May, Jersey’s parliament voted in favour of drawing up laws to establish an assisted dying service on the island for terminally ill people and, if the law is approved, the earliest it could come into effect would be spring 2027.
An Assisted Dying Bill in the Isle of Man passed a third reading in July, and is due to be debated further later this month, with campaigners saying if the bill gains royal assent next year, assisted dying could be available to eligible Manx residents from 2027.
Who will qualify for the new bill?
Only terminally ill adults with less than six months to live who have a settled wish to end their lives would be eligible under the new law.
The bill, which was published on Monday night, runs to almost 40 pages, with around 20 pages of explanatory notes.
Ms Leadbetter suggested any new law would not take effect for another two to three years, with ‘even more consultation to make sure we get it right’.
She acknowledged this would be ‘heartbreaking’ for people and families for whom change could come too late.
The private member’s bill would make it illegal for someone to persuade a person through dishonesty, coercion or pressure to declare they wanted to end their life or to induce someone to self-administer drugs to die.
Anyone found guilty of doing so would face a maximum prison sentence of 14 years.
Ms Leadbeater said: ‘Throughout the process there are layers and layers of safeguards and protections which I believe will probably make it the most robust piece of legislation in the world.’
It is thought the shortest timeframe for the process from first making a declaration to ending a life would be around a month.
Terminally ill people who have been resident in England and Wales for at least 12 months would have to take the prescribed medication themselves.
Has the issue been voted on at Westminster before?
Not for almost a decade. An Assisted Dying Bill, which would have allowed some terminally ill adults to ask for medical help to end their life, went before the Commons in 2015 and was rejected by MPs.
There was also a bill proposed in the House of Lords during the 2021/2022 session which reached a second reading in the chamber, while a Westminster Hall debate on assisted dying took place in July 2022.
Are MPs guaranteed a vote on the bill next month?
No. bills such as this are known as private member’s bills (PMBs) and are considered during Friday sittings. The time available to consider them is from 9.30am until 2.30pm.
If the debate is still ongoing at 2.30pm then it is adjourned and the bill falls to the bottom of the list, which means it is highly unlikely to make any further progress.
A closure motion can be moved to curtail the debate and force a vote. It may be moved at any time during proceedings.
On Friday sittings, an MP seeking to move such a motion tends to do so at around 1pm. If approved, the House then votes on whether or not to give the bill a second reading.
If rejected, the House resumes the debate and the bill is unlikely to progress.
What are the views of the public?
This varies. Research by the Policy Institute and the Complex Life and Death Decisions group at King’s College London (KCL) in September suggested almost two-thirds of people in England and Wales want assisted dying to be legalised for terminally ill adults in the next five years.
But it showed the changeable nature of some people’s views, with some of those voicing support saying they could change their minds if they felt someone had been pressured into choosing an assisted death or had made the choice due to lack of access to care.
Overall, the polling found a fifth (20%) of people said they do not want assisted dying to be legalised in the next five years, while 63% said they do.
In a Guardian op-ed earlier this month, Ms Leadbeater said: ‘I have thought long and hard about these issues which I know are hugely emotive for many people.
‘The truth is that we have never been very comfortable discussing death in this country. But I am sure we all want the best for our relatives and those we care for as they come to the end of their lives.
‘The evidence from those places around the world that already have legislation of the kind I am proposing is that patients draw enormous comfort from simply knowing they have the right to choose how and when to end their lives, even if they eventually decide not to exercise it.’
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