UK MPs vote in favour of assisted dying bill in historic step

AFP | London

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Britain’s parliament took a historic step towards allowing euthanasia yesterday when MPs backed contentious legislation that would introduce assisted dying for terminally ill people.

Lawmakers in the lower House of Commons chamber voted 314 in favour to 291 to send the proposal to the upper House of Lords for further scrutiny following four hours of emotional debate.

The outcome sparked celebrations among supporters gathered outside parliament who say legalised euthanasia will give people with an incurable illness dignity and choice at the end of their lives.

But opponents attending a neighbouring counter-protest said they feared vulnerable people could be coerced into dying and urged lawmakers to focus on improving palliative care instead.

The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill would allow assisted suicide in England and Wales for adults who have been given less than six months to live.

They would have to be able to administer the life-ending substance themselves, and any patient’s wish to die would have to be signed off by two doctors and a panel of experts.

A change in the law would see Britain emulate several other countries in Europe and elsewhere that allow some form of assisted dying, including Belgium and the Netherlands.

Labour MP Kim Leadbeater, who proposed the legislation, told yesterday’s so-called third reading debate that a law change would “offer a compassionate and safe choice” for terminally ill people.

She said maintaining the status quo would mean more “heartbreaking stories” of “pain and trauma, suicide attempts, PTSD, lonely trips to Switzerland, (and) police investigations”.

But Vicky Foxcroft, also of Labour, said the proposal did not include adequate safeguards for disabled people.