Tag: Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill

Holyrood rejects Assisted Dying Bill

MSPs vote down right to choose legislation

The result of the Stage 3 vote on the Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill is:

Yes – 57

No – 69

Abstain – 1

The Bill therefore falls.

Campaign group Dignity in Dying said late last night: “Moments ago, the Scottish Parliament voted against Liam McArthur MSP’s assisted dying Bill, by 69 to 57 with one abstention.

“This means that the Bill will fall and we will have to keep fighting for law change in Scotland.

“We pay tribute to Liam McArthur MSP for acting with integrity and determination, and to the thousands of supporters who have been fighting hard for choice, especially the many terminally ill people and their loved ones who have spoken courageously about their experiences.

“The fight is not over. Thousands of people all over the country have been campaigning for this change, and that work will not stop. Today’s result only hardens our resolve to keep fighting for a safer and more compassionate law.”

@dignityindying

Ash Regan MSP said: “The Assisted Dying Bill has fallen – but this debate must leave a legacy from session 6. We urgently need fully funded, high-quality palliative care for everyone, when they need it.

“We must ensure that those with disabilities are supported with necessary accommodations to fully access public life and be secure at home. Invest in research. Listen to experts.

“Free votes strengthen Parliament. And once again, the limits of devolution for legislation that straddles devolved and reserved matters are laid bare. We must learn and do better for the people of Scotland.”

Foysol Choudhury said: “Yesterday in Parliament, I voted against the Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill.

“The issue of assisted dying raises a lot of emotions and as you can imagine, this was a very difficult decision to make.

“I would like to express my sympathy to Liam McArthur MSP who I know worked tirelessly and with great determination on this proposed Bill.

“Thank you to the many hundreds of constituents who have written to me over the years regarding this Bill, and who have shared their thoughts, concerns and personal experiences.

“Since my election in 2021, I have engaged extensively with many of you, as well as with organisations, doctors, nurses, lawyers, pharmacists, academics, on this important issue.

“While I have carefully listened to all sides of the debate, I ultimately voted against the Bill due to my serious concerns about safeguards and undue pressure on terminally ill people to end their lives as to not burden their families.

“The risk of coercion – particularly for vulnerable groups, including disabled people – is extremely difficult to detect. Many constituents and disability organisations have highlighted fears that the Bill could unintentionally devalue their lives.

“At Stage 3, I remained unconvinced that the Bill could fully guarantee protection against these risks. In my view, it still contains significant flaws and weaknesses.

“I strongly believe we must prioritise a robust healthcare system that delivers world-class, compassionate, and accessible palliative care for all.

“I do not believe that the answer to suffering lies in prematurely ending life. Every life has inherent value, and we must show our future generations that life is precious, must be protected and cared for in the best way possible.”

Scotland’s leading healthcare organisations raise serious concerns over Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill

Scotland’s leading healthcare organisations raise serious concerns over proposed changes to Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill

A group of six major medical and healthcare membership organisations in Scotland has issued a joint consensus statement warning of their significant concern regarding changes now being proposed to the Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill.

The organisations – whose members span a wide range of clinical and ethical perspectives on assisted dying – emphasise that while they take no collective position on the principle of assisted dying, they are united in their concern that provisions relating to no duty to participate and conscientious objection may be removed from the Bill, and the impact that this could have on the workforce.

The Scottish Government has recently indicated that key provisions relating to ‘no duty to participate’, as well as other protections linked to professional regulation and employment rights are not within devolved powers and may be removed from the Bill at Stage 3. These issues would instead be addressed later through a Section 104 Order – secondary legislation that receives only limited parliamentary scrutiny.

The signatory organisations state that removing issues of such significance risk undermining both professional confidence and public trust.

The joint letter, sent today to Liam McArthur MSP, the Scottish Parliament Health, Social Care and Sport Committee, the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care, as well as the Secretary of State and Chair of the House of Commons Scottish Affairs Committee states:

“The prospect of removing matters of such professional, ethical, and legal significance from parliamentary scrutiny at Stage 3, and deferring them to secondary legislation after the Bill has passed, raises important questions about transparency, accountability, and the robustness of the legislative process.

“These protections are central to the safe, ethical, and fair delivery of care, and to the confidence of our medical workforce who may be affected by the legislation.”

The organisations highlight four core concerns:

1. Removal of key safeguards from primary legislation

2. Risk to professional confidence and public trust

3. Inadequate scrutiny of consequential provisions

4. Implications for safe and ethical implementation

The group of organisations in consensus express their continuing commitment to work constructively with the Scottish Government and Scottish Parliament to ensure that any legislation affecting assisted dying is developed transparently, rigorously, and with full consideration of the healthcare workforce it will impact.

Signatory organisations:

  • Association for Palliative Medicine (Scotland)
  • Medical and Dental Defence Union of Scotland
  • Royal College of General Practitioners Scotland
  • Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow
  • Royal College of Psychiatrists in Scotland
  • Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh
  • Royal Pharmaceutical Society
Consensus statement – ADTIA (Scotland) Bill – FINALDownload

Two people from Edinburgh feature in tonight’s Eòrpa about Assisted Dying

Two people from Edinburgh feature in the next episode of European Current Affairs programme, Eòrpa, which is about the proposed Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill and will air on BBC ALBA tonight (Thursday, November 18) at 8.30pm.

Dr Donald MacDonald – from Edinburgh – practiced as a doctor, and as a minister, for many years, both in the UK and in India and he’s had MS for almost 40 years. He is against the assisted dying Scotland Bill because it goes against the age old medical ethic of not ending a life deliberately. He’s concerned that people would feel like a burden on their family, friends or caregivers and due to this they might opt for ending their life via assisted suicide or euthanasia.

And Leighanne Baird-Sangster from Edinburgh. In May 2020, her wife Gill was terminally ill with melanoma cancer and when she reached the end-of-life stage they had a very difficult 10 days before she died when she suffered a lot of pain. Leighanne supports the Assisted Dying Scotland Bill, so that no one else goes through what her wife did.

Assisted dying has always been a divisive, and deeply controversial topic. Those in favour may see it as a compassionate way to end suffering. Many people come to support it due to their own personal experience. But on the other hand, many of those against changing the law see it as gravely immoral, and as something which could be used to undermine the rights of the most vulnerable in society.

Any new change in the law in Scotland would not make it easy for someone to go through the assisted dying process. Anyone who wishes to go through with it must have a terminal, incurable illness, and must be deemed to be near the end of their lives. Although the proposed bill currently contains no recommendation on exactly how long someone might naturally have left to live.

Spain is the latest country to pass an assisted dying bill, giving people the option to end their lives when they choose. From March this year, those living in Spain who suffer from incurable illnesses can begin the process to end their own lives.  

In Spain, a doctor can administer the final drug – something which would not be allowed were the law to change in Scotland.

Other Contributors include: 

Dr Gordon MacDonald, Chief Executive Care not Killing, believes it would put people who are vulnerable in a very dangerous situation, that they would come under pressure to end their lives prematurely and rather than that we should be investing in proper palliative care.  

Ally Thompson, Director – Dignity in Dying – says the current blanket ban is unfair and unjust, and causes so many dying people and their families to suffer needlessly. He believes legalising assisted dying for terminally ill, mentally competent adults, would be better.

Liam MacArthur MSP for Orkney Islands – he thinks people have increasingly come to the conclusion that having this choice of an assisted death is compassionate, it’s what a progressive country ought to aspire to,

Rev Domhnall Michael Macinnes – he believes that passing this Bill would open Pandora’s Box and we should be encouraging life for people because it’s a precious gift from God. Mr MacInnes, who is minister of Gairbraid Church in Maryhill, Glasgow, is originally from Lewis. He is also a former minister at St Columba’s Church in St Vincent Street, Glasgow.

Javier Serrano Martin from Spain – was the first person in Madrid to die under the new assisted dying legislation. He suffered from Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) and spoke to Eorpa shortly before his death.