The House of Commons has narrowly voted against the legalisation of medically assisted suicide, with 286 votes against and 270 in favour.
The bill was put forward by Labour’s Lauren Edwards MP, however as an issue of conscience MPs were not expected to vote along party lines. Prime Minister Andy Burnham has indicated that while he favours the principle of assisted suicide, improving the country’s patchy palliative care system must come first.
Earlier this year another attempt to legalise assisted suicide failed. That bill, put forward by another Labour MP, Kim Leadbeater narrowly passed the House of Commons but ran out of time in the House of Lords as peers raised concerns about inadequate safeguards on the bill.
Some MPs who voted for the Leadbeater bill openly declared their opposition to the Edwards bill, which is functionally the same.
Speaking during the pre-vote debate in the House of Commons, Labour MP Janet Daby said that she had “nightmares about dying and death” after voting for the Leadbeater bill.
“I had to wrestle with myself, knowing that I was not entirely comfortable with the decision I had made, and my conscience was not at peace, and I cannot again, in good conscience, vote for the Bill," she said.
The decision to vote against the controversial measure shows that a significant change has taken place among parliamentarians, who just a year ago voted 314 to 291 in favour of a virtually identical bill.
Ross Hendry, CEO of CARE, said God had heard people’s prayers.
He said another attempt to legalise assisted suicide within this Parliament was “highly unlikely”.
“Parliament has expressed a clear desire to tackle long-running problems in the provision of palliative and social care services. CARE has historically advocated for greater access to palliative care, and we will continue to do so,” he said.
“And we will be vigilant against any future attempts to pass assisted suicide legislation in each region of the United Kingdom.
“But today is a day to give thanks that England and Wales have been spared, for now, the horror of assisted suicide being legalised. We give God all the glory!”
The news of the vote was welcomed by Right To Life UK, who described the result as a “victory for hope, compassion and life”.
Writing on X, the group said, “After a two-year-long national debate, despite unprecedentedly favourable conditions for assisted suicide advocates, the country has decided to reject the danger, despair, dystopia & defeatism of assisted suicide, settling the issue for a generation.”
The group called on MPs to “unite” and ensure that palliative care receives the investment it needs.
Care Not Killing agreed, saying, “Our hope is that MPs now focus on repairing palliative care in the UK and securing the necessary funding to make sure that no matter what part of the country you live in, you can access the best possible care available and are treated with dignity and respect. As one of many doctors have said, we need much more care, not killing.”
