Britain’s House of Commons has voted to legalise assisted dying for terminally ill adults, marking a groundbreaking shift in the national approach to end-of-life care.
The proposed legislation — titled the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill — passed on Friday with 314 votes in favour and 291 against, a narrow margin that nonetheless clears the law’s biggest parliamentary hurdle. The bill now moves to the House of Lords, where it will undergo further scrutiny and possible amendment, though the unelected chamber is unlikely to defy the expressed will of elected MPs.
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If ultimately enacted, the law would allow mentally competent adults in England and Wales who have been diagnosed with a terminal illness and given less than six months to live the right to end their lives with medical assistance. Britain would join a growing number of jurisdictions — including Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and several U.S. states — in permitting assisted dying under strict safeguards.
The vote followed hours of emotionally charged debate, as MPs shared personal stories and moral reflections on an issue that transcends traditional party politics. Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s Labour government adopted a neutral stance on the matter, allowing MPs a free vote. Starmer himself voted in favour.
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The chamber’s decision drew emotional scenes outside Westminster. Hundreds gathered on Parliament Square in anticipation, many holding placards reading “Dignity in Dying” or “My Life, My Choice.” When the result was announced, supporters of the bill erupted into applause and tears, some embracing and shouting “Victory!” Opponents stood quietly, some visibly distressed.
Emma Bray, a 42-year-old mother of two living with advanced motor neurone disease, described the vote as a turning point. Speaking to Reuters, Bray revealed she had resolved to end her life by refusing food and water next month in the absence of a legal alternative.
“This result will mean that people will not have to go through the same suffering I have faced,” she said.
Public sentiment appears firmly behind the reform. Recent opinion polls indicate that a clear majority of Britons support assisted dying laws, especially when framed with safeguards and limited to the terminally ill. The vote also comes a decade after parliament last rejected such a measure.
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Notably, the 314–291 result reflects slightly narrowed support since November, when MPs voted 330–275 in favour of the bill in principle. Key changes since then include replacing a proposed court approval mechanism with a panel review process involving a senior judge, a social worker, and a psychiatrist — a shift some critics say weakens the safeguards.
But Labour MP Kim Leadbeater, who introduced the bill, defended the revised framework.
“I am fully confident in the bill,” she told the BBC. “The safeguards are extremely thorough, extremely robust, and I’m confident that this will help the people it needs to help.”
Opposition remains strong and vocal. Critics argue that the legislation could place vulnerable people at risk of coercion, undermine the patient-doctor relationship, and potentially divert attention from improving palliative care. Others have raised concerns about the burden on the National Health Service and the ethical precedent it sets.
Care Not Killing, a coalition opposed to assisted dying, labelled the bill “deeply flawed and dangerous.” The group’s chief executive, Gordon Macdonald, criticised the speed of the legislative process.
