Terminally ill people contacted peers expressing distress after former Prime Minister Theresa May (Conservative) described the assisted dying legislation as a "suicide Bill" during House of Lords debate. The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill returned to the Lords on Friday for its second day of debate.
Baroness May told the chamber last week it was an "assisted suicide Bill" that "effectively says suicide is OK". She told peers: "I have a friend who calls it the 'licence to kill' Bill."
Peers criticise damaging language
Baroness Thornton said she was "saddened" by May's comments during Friday's debate. She revealed: "People have written to me in the last week, very distressed, and they say, 'we are not suicidal, we want to live, but we are dying, and we do not have the choice or ability to change that'."
She emphasised: "Assisted dying is not suicide." Thornton told colleagues their role was to "scrutinise it (the Bill) further and improve it, if we need to do so" rather than kill the legislation.
Baroness Blackstone said she felt "affronted" by language including references to "the 'killing Bill' or the 'assisted suicide Bill'". Labour peer Baroness Jan Royall of Blaisdon said she had been "dismayed at the conflation made by some of suicide and assisted dying", adding: "This isn't just about careless language. It is actively damaging to people who are already suffering."
Opposition voices concerns
However, Lord Curry of Kirkharle argued the Bill would "devalue the importance of human life and economics will become part of the decision-making process". He warned: "We are at a crossroads and must decide what kind of a nation we want to be."
Lord Patten of Barnes branded the legislation an "unholy legislative mess" and suggested it could lead to death becoming the "default solution to perceived suffering". Campaigners against the Bill gathered outside Parliament during the debate, setting out shoes to symbolise what they said could be lives lost if assisted dying is legalised.
Special committee proposal
Lord Charlie Falconer, the Bill's sponsor, is expected to support an amendment from Baroness Luciana Berger establishing a special committee to examine the legislation. The committee would hear evidence from Health and Justice Secretaries plus legal and medical professionals.
Baroness Berger said there was "support from peers across the House of Lords for this unprecedented select committee because there is a deep concern about the lack of detail in the Assisted Dying Bill". The committee of around a dozen peers would likely launch next month and must report by November 7th before the Bill can progress.
Bill details and timeline
The legislation would allow terminally ill adults in England and Wales with fewer than six months to live to apply for assisted death. Applications require approval from two doctors and a panel featuring a social worker, senior legal figure and psychiatrist.
Assisted dying will become law only if both Houses of Parliament agree on the final wording. If passed into law, the Government has four years to establish an assisted dying service, meaning the first assisted death could occur in 2029 or 2030.
Sources used: "PA Media" Note: This article has been edited with the help of Artificial Intelligence.
