It was announced on 3 October that Kate Leadbetter MP will be putting forward a Private Member’s Bill in the House of Commons to legalise assisted dying for terminally adults in England & Wales. The precise details of the Bill are not available at the time of writing, but I understand that it is likely to be similar to the Bill put forward by Lord Falconer in the House of Lords. I understand that Lord Falconer’s Bill will have its second reading in the House of Lords on 15 November. As the Parliament website explains, Second Reading “is the first opportunity for members of the Lords to debate the key principles and main purpose of a bill and to flag up any concerns or specific areas where they think amendments (changes) are needed.” The progress of Lord Falconer’s Bill can be followed here.
At the risk of sounding unduly pompous, and despite having been involved in litigation about this issue and teaching it at King’s College London, it is not my place to comment on whether or not assisted dying should be made legal; rather, I will seek to do my best to inform the debate. As a starter for 10:
- This is an informer video I recorded a few months ago about the issue.
- This is a submission I led on on behalf of the Complex Life and Death Decisions research group to the Health and Social Care Select Committee inquiry into assisted dying / assisted suicide addressing issues of mental capacity arising in this context.
- This is a table of cases decided in Canada in a period in 2016 when the equivalent of High Court judges were deciding applications brought by individuals seeking (in effect) confirmation that they met the criteria for assisted dying. Lord Falconer’s Bill would require the consent of High Court judge in each case; the extracts from the cases in the table may be of interest for those wanting to think about what the role of the judge would be.
I would also recommend the resources of the British Medical Association on physician assisted dying for those who want to understand the issues in context (including the international context).
The Complex Life and Death Decisions research group, together with the King’s Policy Institute, are holding an event on 16 October on assisted dying: principles, practice and politics. The event will include discussion of the findings from new polling in England & Wales.