Kim Leadbeater's Assisted Dying Bill seems to be stalling now its going through the Committee stage...
When the Bill first came to the Commons for debate, the mood was one of respectful debate that unusually seemed to involve listening and sympathy. However that mood has now most definitely been lost.
In latest voting session was hectic, argumentative session, and characterized by charges of ill faith and lack of time. Speeches were rigorously curtailed — initially to 15 minutes, then to only five — and most MPs who wished to speak were not given the opportunity. In more than four hours of debate, only the question of whether to do anything at all was put to a vote. Of a dozen amendments tabled, only two were voted on.
Not an acceptable way to make law...
I mean it would be hard to think of a more serious and sensitive issue to legislate for... the right to take your own life through medical intervention, it's about as much of a moral-maze as you can get!
And of course it's not just pie-in-the-sky ethics, it's about how to manifest those ethical problems... how to distinguish between a plea for help and a genuine desire to die, how to protect the vulnerable who may lack capacity to some extent, how to ensure the medical staff who are involved are protected too.
Psych blocking..
The Royal College of Psychiatrists threw a spanner in the works by rejecting the proposed system for approving assisted deaths. Originally, the plan was for a lone High Court judge to sign off each case, but when that was rejected Leadbeater suggested a board of a lawyer, social worker and psychiatrist. But psychiatrists said this would be in conflict with their obligation to treat — not facilitate — suicidal patients. More basically, there aren't enough of them to go around!
Final thoughts...
Polls consistently show strong public support for assisted dying, and on the second reading back in November 2024 the Bill passed with a majority of 50, suggesting MPs feelings broadly fall in line with public opiniion.
However, even though there is support in principle, it's a different matter fleshing out the minutiae of the actual legislation.
I think we just need to find a bit more time for everyone to have a say.