LONDON: Britain’s parliament voted in favour of a new bill to legalise assisted dying on Friday, opening the way for months of further debate over an issue that has sparked a national conversation over dignity in death and end-of-life care.

In an initial approval of the bill, 330 lawmakers voted in favour and 275 against the “Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life)” bill, which would provide for mentally competent, terminally ill adults in England and Wales who are assessed by doctors to have six months or less left to live the right to choose to end their lives with medical help.

It kicks off months of further debate and the bill could still be changed or even voted down as it makes its way through both the House of Commons and the unelected upper chamber of parliament, the House of Lords.

“It will be a very thorough process,” Kim Leadbeater, the Labour lawmaker who introduced the bill, told the BBC, adding that the process could take another six months and that she was open to discussing further changes to address people’s concerns.

“There’s plenty of time to get this right,” she said after more than four hours of often emotional debate in the chamber.

Those in favour of the bill say it is about shortening the death of those who are terminally ill and giving them more control.

But opponents say vulnerable ill people may feel they should end their lives for fear of being a burden to their families and society, rather than prioritising their own well-being.

Others expressed concern that there had not been enough time to consider the bill before voting.

Published in Dawn, November 30th, 2024