Kim Leadbeater MP has introduced a Private Members Bill (PMB) to legalise the medical killing of patients in certain circumstances. BuDS has once again called on Ms Leadbeater to withdraw her bill to allow time for a Royal Commission to be set up to thoroughly explore the issue of Assisted Dying and make evidence-based recommendations for a change in the law. We think dying people deserve nothing less.
Because Kim Leadbeater’s bill is a Private Members Bill, it will be debated very little in the House of Commons. Government Bills take up most of the available Parliamentary time. Debate on the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill will begin at about 9:40 am on Friday 29 November, and by 2:30 pm, a vote must be taken or the Bill will effectively fail. That is less than 5 hours for MPs to debate all the pros and cons of an incredibly complex and difficult subject. In reality, Kim Leadbeater’s Bill may only be allocated 2 or 3 hours for debate on 29 November, because there are other Private Members Bills which need to be debated too.
We feel that a maximum of just five hours debating time to decide whether in principle the law should be changed to allow the medical killing of patients is unacceptable. Such an important and complex issue obviously needs far more time to get right.
BuDS therefore calls on Kim Leadbeater MP to withdraw her bill to allow time for a Royal Commission to be set up to thoroughly explore the issue of Assisted Dying and make evidence-based recommendations for a change in the law. Dying people deserve nothing less.
If you’d like to join BuDS’ campaign to protect disabled people against the unwanted consequences of medically assisted suicide, please contact us using the form below. We welcome all volunteers, whether disabled or not, wherever they live in England.