MPs vote to progress Assisted Dying Bill

BASW will continue to engage with MPs on the proposals.
Westminster

On Friday 29 November, Members of the UK Parliament agreed to the general principles of theTerminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill which seeks to permit assisted dying in England and Wales under certain criteria. This marks the first time that the House of Commons has voted in favour of assisted dying. A separate Bill is being considered for Scotland in the Scottish Parliament, which will be voted on early next year.

Watch Friday's debate here and read the transcript here.

The proposals, put forward as a Private Members Bill by Kim Leadbeater MP, has charged public debate over the past few months as proponents and opponents of the legislation have sought to make their case. 

MPs were given a free vote on the Bill, meaning that their political party did not instruct them to vote a certain way, given that it is a matter of conscience. Following a lengthy debate, MPs voted 330-275 in favour of the Bill advancing to the committee stage, where it will be scrutinised in greater detail and amended by a public bill committee - a group of MPs still to be selected - before returning to the House of Commons floor to be debated and voted upon by all MPs again.

Key aspects of the Bill include: 

  • The person must be an adult – aged 18 or older – and be resident in England and Wales and registered with a GP for at least 12 months.
  • They must have the mental capacity to make a choice about the end of their life and be deemed to have expressed a clear, settled and informed wish – free from coercion or pressure – to end their life.
  • They must be terminally ill and be expected to die within six months.
  • They must make two separate declarations, witnessed and signed, about their wish to die.
  • The process must involve two independent doctors being satisfied the person is eligible and the medics can consult a specialist in the person’s condition and get an assessment from an expert in mental capacity if deemed necessary.
  • A High Court judge must hear from at least one of the doctors regarding the application and can also question the dying person as well as anyone else they consider appropriate.
  • There must be at least seven days between the two doctors making their assessments and a further 14 days after the judge has made a ruling, for the person to have a period of reflection on their decision.
  • For someone whose death is expected imminently, the 14-day period could be reduced to 48 hours.

BASW has not taken a position on being for or against assisted dying but, in our submission to MPs ahead of Friday's debate, we raised concerns about the absence of any recognition about the role of social workers in adult safeguarding and mental capacity.

The issues of mental capacity and adult safeguarding are central to the issue of assisted dying. However, there is a significant disconnect between the proposals set out in the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill and already existing legislation in England and Wales both in terms of mental capacity (Mental Capacity Act 2005) and adult safeguarding (Care Act 2014 and Social Services and Wellbeing (Wales) Act 2014). This disconnect would create significant legal and practical issues both for those seeking assisted dying, their loved ones, and for professionals involved in the process – risking flawed and irreversible decisions.

This is a critical point that we will continue to make to MPs as they seek to amend the Bill. We are also encouraging members to write to their MP with a copy of our briefing, which you can find below alongside a template letter. You can find contact details for your MP here.

Draft letter to MP

Dear [my member of parliament], 

I am a member of the British Association of Social Workers (BASW), and I am writing to you about the Terminally Ill Adults Bill. 

I have attached a copy of BASW’s briefing on the Bill, and our concerns regarding adult safeguarding and mental capacity. I hope that you will consider this when examining the Bill in parliament, and would welcome your views. If you would like to arrange a meeting to speak to BASW, please contact them on policyadmin@basw.co.uk  

[Insert own text] 

Yours sincerely,

[Insert name]