Assisted Dying Bill Path Reopens After Parliamentary Ballot

Assisted dying campaigners have a narrow path to revive the bill after two MPs who supported the measure placed in the top five of the new private member’s bill ballot.

Supporters of Kim Leadbeater’s original private member’s bill, which expired without passing, could use the Parliament Act to bypass the House of Lords if they persuade another MP to reintroduce the legislation through the House of Commons.

Labour MP Lauren Edwards, a backer of the bill, secured second place in the ballot, while Liberal Democrat MP Andrew George placed fourth. The draw occurred Thursday morning.

This year’s ballot attracted 485 MPs, the highest number in a decade, with 20 selected to present bills. However, only those in the top five positions realistically have sufficient time to pass legislation.

George, who represents St Ives, told The Guardian he will take time to decide whether to take on the bill. MPs must present their bills by June 17. He said the bill was “on my list as a potential but it’s a list of at least a dozen and growing.”

He said he would consult his constituents over the next two weeks before deciding. “This is a great opportunity for West Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly,” he added. “That’s why I want to take a little time to listen to what constituents say before finally making my decision about which option would be best.”

George had previously been a vocal critic of the delay to the bill in the Lords and said bringing the bill back would “end for good the disgraceful abuse of entitlement by a few members of the House of Lords.” He added he is also considering subjects including affordable housing, safe staffing by nurses, and palliative care standards.

Leadbeater wrote to MPs last week urging supporters to allow the bill to return to the Commons. MPs chosen in the ballot were evenly split on the bill, with 10 in favor and 10 opposed.

The Conservative MP who placed first in the ballot, Sir Desmond Swayne, is an opponent of the bill.

Leadbeater’s version of the bill, which must be taken up by another MP in identical form to apply the Parliament Act, would allow terminally ill adults in England and Wales with fewer than six months to live to apply for an assisted death, subject to approval by medical and legal professionals.

“If anything, people feel more focused on the issue because of what happened in the Lords,” Leadbeater said. “Even people who didn’t necessarily support the bill in the Commons, I can think of two or three particular examples, are furious at the behaviour of a small number of peers, that the bill wasn’t able to reach a conclusion. I think if anything, there’ll be more support.”

But Jess Asato, a Labour MP who opposed the bill, said it would be a distraction to bring it back. “We know the assisted dying bill is flawed and unsafe because the experts like the royal medical colleges and the Equality and Human Rights Commission have told us,” she said.

“The last thing our party should be focusing on right now is continuing to debate this deeply divisive, flawed and risky bill rather than delivering on the priorities of voters.”