Assisted dying bill - latest: Esther Rantzen reacts to ‘extraordinary’ vote as MPs back historic legislation
The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill received 330 ayes and 275 noes, a majority of 55 votes
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Your support makes all the difference.Dame Esther Rantzen described Kim Leadbeater’s introduction of her bill as “extraordinary” as MPs have voted in favour of the legislation following a fierce commons debate.
The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill received 330 ayes and 275 noes, a majority of 55 votes.
The broadcaster, who has been a vocal advocate of the law, said: “She has a complete mastery of the facts. She knows exactly which are the most crucial points.
“She put it all very clearly, taking interventions all the way through, and answering them without ever losing the thread of her argument.
“I was lost in admiration. She’s an extraordinary person.”
Dame Esther, who is also terminally ill, said she was “absolutely thrilled” with the result of the vote.
The bill will now go to the committee stage where MPs can table amendments, before facing further scrutiny and votes in both the House of Commons and the House of Lords, meaning any change in the law would not be agreed until next year at the earliest.
Warning: this article contains information that people might find distressing, including accounts of human suffering.
The horse trading begins
Lib Dem deputy leader Daisy Cooper has intervened to ask if Kim Leadbeater is willing to toughen up the language of her bill to strengthen safeguards.
Perhaps realising the criticism of alleged loopholes in her bill, Ms Leadbeater readily agreed.
Such interventions can sway some of the undecideds and be more important than they seem in the moment.
Just changing the minds or reassuring a few MPs could be the difference between success and failure today.
A number of MPs have risen during Kim Leadbeater’s opening speech to raise their concerns about her Bill
Independent MP Richard Burgon has said he is “really concerned” that people in care homes would feel like a burden to their families and seek to end their lives earlier to save social care fees.
He said people might think “If I end my life now, I can save my family between 25,000 and 50,000 thousand pounds”.
DUP MP Jim Shannon was concerned that the Bill did not offer assurances that “we won’t end up in the position in Belgium”, where the criteria for those who can have an assisted death is much broader.
Ms Leadbeater assured the house that “the model that is being proposed here is nothing like what happens in Belgium, it is nothing like what is happening in Canada.”
Tory MP Oliver Dowden raised concerns about “excessive judicial activism” that might broaden the intentions of MPs and widen the Bill beyond just terminally ill adults or others.
Man with cerebral palsy says ‘we should be assisting people to live rather than to die’
A 29-year-old man with cerebral palsy has said the NHS should be “assisting people to live, rather than to die”.
George Fielding from Hammersmith, west London said: “We should be prioritising reform to social care, to the NHS and to palliative care.
“We should be assisting people to live rather than to die.
“This is the cart before the horse. It is, very darkly, the cart before the horse, and it is very pessimistically the cart before the horse.”
He said the situation reads to him like “we can’t afford for disabled people to live good lives”.
Proposed laws are ‘nothing like’ existing legislation in other countries, says Leadbeater
Kim Leadbeater told MPs the assisted dying Bill being debated was “nothing like” the laws in Canada and Belgium because while it strived for a similar purpose, it had greater safeguards.
DUP MP Jim Shannon (Shannon) intervened to claim the situation in Belgium had “deteriorated” to include dementia and under 18s.
He asked: “What guarantees have we that this legislation today will not end up as it will in Belgium, in which case ‘anything goes’? Is that what she really wants? I don’t want it, does she?”
Spen Valley MP Ms Leadbeater replied: “Let’s be very clear. A huge amount of research has been done by the Health and Social Care Select Committee and indeed by myself and others.
“The model that is being proposed here is nothing like happens in Belgium, it is nothing like happens in Canada. It is strict, stringent criteria, and if the House chooses to pass this Bill, that criteria cannot be changed.”
Former Tory minister rasies fears medic will be unable to check for coercion
Conservative former minister Simon Hoare raised fears medics will be unable to check for coercion in assisted dying requests.
Intervening in Kim Leadbeater’s speech to introduce the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, Mr Hoare said: “She references coercion and I recognise the point that she makes about the two medics, but the medics won’t be able to see or have heard anything and everything at all times. People will not be put beyond challenge because subsequent to the death, if a relative claims coercion of another relative, investigation will remain.”
Ms Leadbeater, the Labour MP for Spen Valley, replied: “We’re going to check for coercion in a very robust system. We don’t have any of that now, so at the moment the person will definitely be dead.
“We have to look at the status quo by putting layers of safeguarding and checking for coercion. That’s got to be better than the system that we’ve got now.”
Where are the public on assisted dying?
Kim Leadbeater noted in her opening speech that 75 per cent of the public support the principle of assisted dying. It is true that this result has been repeated in most polls on the subject as the debate has drawn nearer.
However, there are other polling results which suggest that the public also have concerns.
Results by Delta polling published today reveal that 70 per cent say the NHS is insufficiently funded to provide pain relief or palliative care for people at the end of their lives and 73 per cent believe this would improve end of life experiences if palliative care was fully funded.
It reflects other polling used by former prime minister Gordon Brown last week who argued that a commission into palliative care is required before a decision on assisted dying is taken.
On the issue of coercion, Delta found 70 per cent fear that disabled people could be impacted to end their life, even if they don’t want to and 66 per cent of people are worried about terminally ill people being pressured by others requesting an assisted death. We need to make sure disabled people’s concerns are fully explored.
But there are other issues which arise and could affect decisions on whether people decide to end their own lives.
Delta found that 83 per cent are worried about a long and painful death; 77 per cent are worried about losing dignity and independence; 77 per cent are worried about unsupervised suicide; 78 per cent are worried about financial hardship; and 63 per cent are worried about the cost to the NHS.
Today is one of those historic moments MPs do not want to miss
There are very few Fridays in Parliament where you even see an MP in the Commons chamber.
Today’s assisted dying bill debate is one of those historic moments almost all MPs do not want to avoid.
As Labour MP Kim Leadbeater opens the debate for her bill, the chamber is full of MPs on both sides of the chamber.
It is still not clear which way MPs will go but Ms Leadbeater has begun with some harrowing cases of people who wanted to end their lives while suffering dreadful pain.
There will be many more such examples on both sides of the debate today. The early exchanges make it clear that the issue of coercion could be decisive. It will fall to the undecided MPs to see if the way we view the relationship between the NHS and people changes forever.
Kim Leadbeater: Too many people are experiencing ‘human suffering’ as a result of the ‘status quo'
Labour MP Kim Leadbeater has told MPs about a former police officer who felt he could not visit the Swiss Dignitas clinic with his mother.
The MP for Spen Valley told the Commons: “Former police officer James waved his mum off as she embarked on her final trip to Dignitas. She had terminal vasculitis.
“James desperately wanted to accompany his mum and hold her hand during her final moments, but he knew because of his job as a police officer it was just not possible – indeed, she insisted he must not go with her. So she went alone. No one to hold her hand, no proper goodbye or funeral.
“These are just a few examples of the heartbreaking reality and human suffering which far too many people are experiencing as a result of the status quo. And the public know this.”
Ms Leadbeater later said: “Let’s be clear, we are not talking about a choice between life or death, we are talking about giving dying people a choice of how to die.”
Labour’s Kim Leadbeater opens debate
Labour MP Kim Leadbeater, the one behind the bill, said the assisted dying Bill will give people “choice, autonomy and dignity” as she opened the debate in the Commons.
The MP for Spen Valley told MPs: “It is a privilege to open the debate on the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill – a piece of legislation which would give dying people, under very stringent criteria, choice, autonomy and dignity at the end of their lives.”
She added: “And let me say to colleagues across the House – particularly new colleagues – I know that this is not easy. It certainly hasn’t been easy for me. But if any of us wanted an easy life I’m afraid we are in the wrong place.
“It is our job to address complex issues and make difficult decisions. And I know for many people this is a very difficult decision.
“But our job is also to address the issues that matter to people, and after nearly a decade since this subject was debated on the floor of the House, many would say this debate is long overdue.”
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