More than 50 Labour MPs have asked the House of Commons to delay the vote on legalising assisted suicide, due to concerns about the “woefully inadequate” process used in what would represent a “foundational change”.
The vote is currently scheduled to take place on Friday. The MPs have written to Lucy Powell, the Leader of the House, requesting a postponement on the vote.
The letter states, “On Friday, Members will debate and vote on perhaps the most consequential piece of legislation that has appeared before the House in generations.
“This is not a normal Bill. It alters the foundations of our NHS, the relationship between doctor and patient, and it strips power away from Parliament, concentrating it in the hands of future Health Secretaries.
“MPs will be arriving at Westminster on Friday morning without sight of the final version of the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill.”
The process leading up to the vote was criticised by the MPs, who said that of the 133 amendments tabled during the Report Stage, they were only given the opportunity to vote for 12 of them. They also noted that only 14 per cent of MPs had been given the opportunity to speak in Parliament on the subject, and that even MPs who had proposed amendments were often unable to speak in support of their proposals.
Previous reports have indicated that some MPs had voted for the bill at previous readings merely to keep debate going rather than from outright support for the bill. The Labour MPs hinted at this in their letter, saying that the issue is no longer an “abstract principle”, but one that is of “real concern” to medical exports.
Various medical bodies, including the Royal College of Pathologists and the Royal College of Psychiatrists have issued statements in opposition to the bill.
In related news, The Other Half, a think tank which looks at the impact of government policy on women, warned that legalising assisted suicide could lead to victims of domestic abuse being coerced into ending their lives.
