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Parliament

You can find here all the latest information about Bills before Parliament, debates in both houses and the latest significant political developments, at home and abroad.

 

1 March 2024

Submission to the Health and Social Care Committee

Please find below Living and Dying Well’s submission to the Health and Social Care Committee during their inquiry into assisted…
1 March 2024

Response to the Health and Social Care Committee Report

Please find below Living and Dying Well’s press release responding to the Health and Social Care Committee’s report into assisted…
31 January 2023

Submission to the Health and Select Committee

Please find below LDW’s submission to the Health and Select Committee Inquiry on Assisted Suicide. Download it here.…
14 November 2022

Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology: Assisted Dying

This POSTbrief provides a brief overview of assisted dying, including ethical debate and stakeholder opinion. It examines how assisted dying…
14 November 2022

Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology: Palliative Care

Palliative and end of life care are increasingly in demand as people are living longer and with multiple long-term conditions.…
24 April 2020

Government will not launch inquiry into law on assisted suicide, says Lord Chancellor.

Robert Buckland QC also expressed personal worries about a change in the law. The Government has no plans to change…
1 February 2020

Lord Falconer reintroduces ‘Assisted Dying’ Bill.

Lord Falconer’s latest Bill has received its First Reading in the House of Lords Lord Falconer has reintroduced his ‘Assisted…
18 May 2018

Legalising ‘assisted dying’ would have been putting the cart before the horse.

Guernsey has focused on care of the dying rather than on giving them help with suicide The States of Guernsey,…
20 December 2017

Commitment to the facts is needed.

This is a serious matter calling for careful weighing of the evidence and with no place for politically-motivated scaremongering Writing…
5 October 2017

High Court Judgment in the case of Mr Noel Conway.

English law on assisting suicide is compatible with the European Convention on Human Rights. On 5 October 2017 the High…
3 August 2017

New Zealand Health Committee reports on ‘Assisted Dying’.

Response of the Health Committee to Petition 2014/18 of Hon. Maryan Street and Others. On 2 August 2017 the Health…
1 April 2017

Appeal Against Assisted Suicide Law Rejected

After Parliament’s rejection of legalisation, it would be ‘institutionally inappropriate’ for the courts to re-open the matter The decision of…
1 April 2017

Court rejects challenge to legal prohibition of assisted suicide.

The High Court has rejected an appeal for legalisation of assisted suicide The High Court has rejected an appeal against…
23 June 2016

Assisting suicide is not a role for doctors.

On 21 June the British Medical Association, at its Annual Representative Meeting, rejected a Motion that its policy of opposition…
7 June 2016

First, do no harm.

Doctors should stand up the the assisted suicide lobby, says The Daily Telegraph. In an editorial The Daily Telegraph has commented on…
23 September 2015

A better deal for the terminally ill.

Private Member’s Bill seeks to ensure equal access to palliative care for all who need it Baroness Finlay’s Access to Palliative…
11 September 2015

A decisive rejection.

The House of Commons has rejected Rob Marris’s Assisted Dying Bill by a substantial majority Today the House of Commons…
11 September 2015

Assisted Dying No.2 Bill – Hansard Record.

House of Commons Rejects Rob Marris MP’s Assisted Dying No.2 Bill On 11 September the House of Commons debated and…
11 September 2015

No legal basis for normalising suicide.

Laws are more than just regulatory instruments: they send social messages In an article in The Daily Telegraph on the day Parliament…
6 September 2015

The Assisted Dying No. 2 Bill

It is neither right nor safe to change the law on assisting suicide Rob Marris’s Private Member’s Bill would license…
4 September 2015

Assisted Dying No.2 Bill.

Should Parliament License Assistance with Suicide? A supplementary report. In our last report, we examined proposals by Lord Falconer and…
23 July 2015

Parliament should not license assistance with suicide – it is neither necessary nor safe to do so.

Rob Marris MP’s Assisted Dying No. 2 Bill would license physician-assisted suicide in England and Wales. It fails to provide…
21 July 2015

Should Parliament license assistance with suicide?

An analysis of proposals currently before Parliament. There are currently two Private Member bills in Parliament seeking to legalise assisted…
21 July 2015

Rob Marris MP’s Assisted Dying No.2 Bill.

The House of Commons in now in recess until 7 September.  Just four days later Rob Marris’s Assisted Dying No.2…
6 June 2015

Scotland rejects assisted suicide for a second time.

MSPs reject Patrick Harvey’s Assisted Suicide (Scotland) Bill. On 27 May 2015 MSPs voted to reject Patrick Harvey’s Assisted Suicide…
6 June 2015

Scottish Parliament rejects assisted suicide bill.

MSPs reject Patrick Harvie’s Assisted Suicide Bill by 82 votes to 36 On 27 May 2015 The Scottish Parliament held…
21 April 2015

A thoughtful and balanced analysis.

Lord Falconer’s Bill should not be revived, says The Times In an editorial published earlier this month The Times took…
5 March 2015

Don’t frighten the horses.

Both sides oppose extension of Oregon’s physician-assisted suicide law – but for different reasons When the House of Lords debated…
12 December 2014

Assembly of Wales debates and rejects Lord Falconer’s Bill.

Assembly Debate Reveals Serious Concerns Over Lord Falconer’s Bill On 10 December 2014 the Assembly of Wales in Cardiff debated…
12 December 2014

Welsh Assembly rejects support for Lord Falconer’s Bill.

In a debate on 10 December the Assembly of Wales in Cardiff debated and rejected a Motion to support the…
12 December 2014

Assembly of Wales debates and rejects Lord Falconer’s Bill.

Assembly Debate Reveals Serious Concerns Over Lord Falconer’s Bill On 10 December 2014 the Assembly of Wales in Cardiff debated…
12 December 2014

Assembly of Wales debates and rejects Lord Falconer’s Bill.

Assembly Debate Reveals Serious Concerns Over Lord Falconer’s Bill. On 10 December 2014 the Assembly of Wales in Cardiff debated…
12 December 2014

Assembly of Wales debates and rejects Lord Falconer’s Bill.

Assembly Debate Reveals Serious Concerns Over Lord Falconer’s Bill. On 10 December 2014 the Assembly of Wales in Cardiff debated…
14 November 2014

Assisted Dying Bill Committee Stage 7November 2014.

On 7 November the House of Lords began Committee Stage on Lord Falconer’s Assisted Dying Bill. In debate lasting from…
17 October 2014

The Crown Prosecution Service provides a clarification

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has published a clarification of one aspect of its Policy for Prosecutors governing cases of…
24 July 2014

Assisted Dying Bill ‘unsatisfactory’, says legal think-tank.

A thoughtful article by legal think-tank Halsbury’s Law Exchange analyses Lord Falconer’s Assisted Dying Bill and gives its verdict. This…
24 July 2014

An assisted dying law would change the moral landscape.

In a balanced and thoughtful editorial published on the eve of the Second Reading of Lord Falconer’s Assisted Dying Bill…
18 July 2014

Assisted Dying Bill second reading 18 July 2014.

Lord Falconer’s Bill Assisted Dying Bill is debated for 9 hours. On 18 July the House of Lords gave a…
15 July 2014

The Assisted Dying Bill (HL Bill 6): A critique.

An analysis by members of the House of Lords of the Assisted Dying Bill. Lord Falconer re-tabled his Assisted Dying…
10 June 2014

Assisted Dying Bill 2014-15

Lord Falconer re-introduces his Private Member’s Bill in the House of Lords . Lord Falconer has re-introduced his ‘Assisted Dying…
5 June 2014

Assisted Dying Bill: Can you really tell if someone’s of sound and settled mind for suicide?

‘Assessing mental capacity isn’t like checking the oil level in a car: it’s a complex business’ – an article by…
5 June 2014

The Assisted Dying Bill devalues the lives of terminally ill and disabled people.

A letter to The Telegraph argues that a change to the current legislation would put pressure on the most vulnerable…
5 March 2014

House of Lords debates assisted suicide guidelines.

The House of Lords discusses how cases of encouraging or assisting suicide are handled by the Crown Prosecution Service. On…
12 December 2013

House of Lords debate on patient choice at the end of life.

Lord Dubs asks the House to “take note of the case for patient choice at the end of life”. In…
5 December 2013

House of Lords debate on ‘Assisted Dying’.

The Earl of Glasgow asks whether the Government intends “to legislate to provide terminally ill patients with the legal right…
5 November 2013

Right-to-die Bill a ‘blank cheque’ for assisted suicide, say senior judges.

Lord Falconer’s proposal would threaten public safety, Peers warn The Daily Telegraph reports today that “an attempt by Lord Falconer, the…
4 November 2013

Claims that the law is not fit for purpose do not stand up to serious scrutiny, say Peers.

Lord Falconer’s ‘assisted dying’ bill is “asking Parliament to sign a blank cheque” In a report published today by think-tank…
4 November 2013

‘Assisted Dying’ and the law.

An analysis of the Suicide Act 1961 and of how it works in practice. In a report published today, three…
23 September 2013

Legalised assisted suicide a “chilling prospect” for disabled people, says Tanni Grey-Thompson.

Legalising ‘assisted dying’ would reinforce prejudices against people with disabilities In a column in The Times (£) former paralympian Tanni Grey-Thompson…
20 June 2013

A bill “not fit for purpose”.

Lack of transparency raises doubts about ‘assisted dying’ bill We are repeatedly told by those who want to see assisted…
20 June 2013

Another ‘Assisted Dying’ Bill: Does it pass the public safety test?

An Analysis of the Assisted Dying Bill. Lord Falconer’s Assisted Dying Bill had its First Reading in the House of Lords…
19 May 2013

An important issue in the ‘assisted dying’ debate.

The Times has raised an important issue in the ‘assisted dying’ debate An editorial in The Times, “Death and the…
18 May 2013

Another ‘assisted dying’ bill: Careful analysis needed.

Lord Falconer has presented his long-heralded Private Member’s Bill to Parliament Lord Falconer’s long-heralded bill to legalise physician-assisted suicide for terminally…
15 May 2013

Assisted Dying Bill 2013-14.

Lord Falconer presents his Private Member’s Bill to Parliament. Lord Falconer has presented his promised ‘assisted dying’ bill to Parliament.…
12 May 2013

A licence for suicide by any other name.

Plans to present an ‘assisted dying’ bill to parliament raise some fundamental and troubling issues, says Lord Carlile of Berriew…
12 May 2013

Sound law-making requires clear language.

This is no matter of mere semantics. If Parliament is to be asked to legalise certain acts, it needs to…
9 April 2013

This is not what the debate is about.

Joan Bakewell is confusing end-of-life with ending-life decisions Every patient has the right to refuse medical treatment, even if the…
1 February 2013

Peer makes new bid to change law on assisted dying.

“Terminally ill patients with less than a year to live would be able to seek the help of friends or…
15 January 2013

NHS: Liverpool Care Pathway

In an oral answer to Baroness Knight of Collingtree, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Department of Health announces…
8 January 2013

House of Commons debate on the Liverpool Care Pathway: Westminster Hall.

In the wake of sensationalist headlines and multiple allegations, Glyn Davies MP tables a debate on the topical Liverpool Care…
17 August 2012

Assisted dying: the harm in helping.

“Making assisted dying legal would alter the way society weighs the value of human life forever”. In a comment piece…
3 July 2012

Safeguarding Choice: A draft assisted dying bill for consultation.

This document, which includes a draft bill seeking to legalise ‘assisted dying’ (ie physician-assisted suicide), was published in July 2012 by the…
27 March 2012

House of Commons debate on prosecuting policy in cases of assisted suicide.

Mr Ottaway’s Motion Carried as Modified by Mrs Bruce’s Amendment. On 27 March 2012 Richard Ottaway MP (Conservative Croydon South) introduced…
28 February 2012

A report which has not seriously moved the debate forward.

Living and Dying Well publishes its analysis of the report of the ‘Commission on Assisted Dying’ Most of the report…
28 February 2012

Considering the evidence.

An analysis of the report of the Commission on Assisted Dying and of its published evidence. The self-styled Commission on…
23 January 2012

Assisted Suicide (Scotland) Bill.

A revised proposal by Margo MacDonald for the legalisation in Scotland of physician-assisted suicide. In 2010 MSP Margo MacDonald’s “End…
5 January 2012

Commission on Assisted Dying: ‘The current legal status of assisted dying is inadequate and incoherent….”

Results of the inquiry led by the Commission on Assisted Dying At the end of 2010 a ‘commission on assisted…
5 January 2012

Should we change the law to license assisted dying for the terminally ill?

Professor Raymond Tallis and Baroness Elizabeth Butler-Sloss argue the case for and against. In The Times Raymond Tallis and Baroness Butler-Sloss…
5 January 2012

Sick people need help to live, not help to die.

Proposals on assisted dying by Lord Falconer are not supported by the medical profession. On the day that Lord Falconer’s self-styled commission…
12 September 2011

This debate needs hard evidence and reasoned analysis, not soundbites and spin.

Today a report by Lord Carlile QC and Baroness Finlay of Llandaff (‘Parliament needs evidence, not soundbites or spin’) addresses a…
12 September 2011

Parliament needs evidence, not soundbites or spin.

Claims that legalising ‘assisted dying’ would be safe do not stand up to careful scrutiny. In this critique Professor Baroness…
24 April 2011

A Question of Public Safety.

A fundamental reappraisal is needed of the concept of safeguards for ‘assisted dying’. In this paper published today, co-Chairs of…
2 December 2010

A sensible decision north of the border.

Margo MacDonald’s “End of Life Assistance” bill has been heavily defeated in the Scottish Parliament Euphemism and verbal evasions and…
20 January 2010

End of Life Assistance (Scotland) Bill.

MSP Margo MacDonald’s 2010 “End of Life Assistance (Scotland)” Bill. We publish here the text of MSP Margo MacDonald’s first…
9 July 2009

Coroners and Justice Bill – Encouraging or Assisting Suicide.

Debate on Lord Falconer’s proposed amendment to the Coroners and Justice Bill – 7 July 2009. The Coroners and Justice…
12 May 2006

Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill Bill (2005) – Second Reading.

The Debate on Lord Joffe’s 2005 “Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill” Bill. In November 2005 Lord Joffe tabled a…
9 November 2005

Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill Bill (2005).

Lord Joffe’s second Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill Bill. Here we provide the text of Lord Joffe’s 2005 Assisted…
10 October 2005

Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill Bill (2004) – Debate on the Select Committee Report.

Report of the select committee on Lord Joffe’s 2004 “Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill” Bill. Lord Joffe’s 2004 “Assisted…
28 April 2005

Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill Bill – Select Committee Report (Volume 3).

A small selection of individual submissions made to the select committee. The select committee, which examined Lord Joffe’s 2004 Assisted…
4 April 2005

Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill Bill – Select Committee Report (Volume 1).

The select committee’s analysis of the evidence and its recommendations. he select committee, which examined Lord Joffe’s 2004 Assisted Dying…
8 January 2004

Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill Bill (2004).

Lord Joffe’s Private Member’s Bill. Here we provide the text of Lord Joffe’s 2004 Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill…

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