A bill to introduce assisted dying for terminally ill people in England and Wales has passed a first vote in Westminster. This sets a significant precedent for Scotland to follow.
We are delighted that a first vote has passed in favour of legalising assisted dying in England and Wales. Kim Leadbeater’s member’s bill will now pass to committee scrutiny and further rounds of voting. There is a very real chance that terminally ill people in England and Wales will soon have the ability to end their lives in a time and a manner of their choosing. This will spare them and their loved ones the potential trauma of a painful death.
This is a major victory for compassion, bodily autonomy, and human rights. It also sets a precedent for other parts of the UK to follow. Liam McArthur MSP’s bill for assisted dying is currently being discussed by Holyrood’s health committee. Lawmakers in Scotland will take part in a similar, stage-one vote in 2025. They must not miss the chance to pass laws ensuring choice and compassion at the end of life.
Our CEO Fraser Sutherland says:
“This is a victory for compassion and rationality. Kim Leadbeater’s bill is very much along the lines of the moderate, carefully safeguarded model of assisted dying we are proposing for Scotland. This vote sets a precedent for Scottish lawmakers to follow. Indeed, the pendulum is now swinging decisively around the world in favour of assisted dying. The fearmongering ‘slippery slope‘ arguments offered by opponents are being carefully and methodically debunked, and links between the anti-assisted dying movement and the Christian religious right are increasingly being exposed. Let’s seize the mantle, and not miss the chance to offer choice and compassion at the end of life for people in Scotland.”
Fraser was quoted in The Times and Daily Record, and also interviewed for Bauer Media.
Tell your MSP the Time is Now for an Assisted Dying law
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