Date: Friday 19th September 2025
Release time: Immediate
Care Not Killing again welcomes the many detailed speeches in the House of Lords, at the conclusion of the final day of Second Reading, that continue to expose that the assisted dying bill is strewn with problems and has no “absolute right” to become law.
Dr Gordon Macdonald, CEO of Care Not Killing, commented:
“What we have witnessed today is the Lords giving the deeply flawed and error-strewn assisted dying bill a terrible mauling. Importantly, many experienced legislators confirmed that this has no absolute right to become law, even though it will progress to Committee Stage without a vote.”
Peers repeatedly raised:
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The importance of additional time to allow proper scrutiny of this legislation;
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The deeply problematic ethical and moral problems with legalising assisted suicide;
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How safeguards had already been watered down, such as the removal of the High Court overseeing each application replacing it with an inferior non-judicial panel;
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In some jurisdictions such as Canada, the Netherlands, and Belgium, eligibility had been massively expanded, allowing those with eating disorders, mental health problems or treatable conditions such as diabetes to qualify for an assisted death;
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The many important matters, 42 of them, that would be left to minister to decided on at a later date;
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How professional bodies and Royal Colleges representing relevant medical specialities – psychiatrists, physicians, GPs, geriatrics and palliative medicine – have all raised concerns;
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More needs to be done to support better palliative care;
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How opt-outs for those caring for terminally ill, vulnerable and disabled people were inadequate;
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The incompatibility of this bill with human rights legislation and other laws, such as the Mental Capacity Act 2005;
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That those with eating disorders should be specifically excluded from accessing an assisted death;
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Legalising assisted dying will impact on the UK’s suicide prevention strategies;
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It would be virtually impossible to safeguard vulnerable people from coercion or subtle pressure, especially those with learning difficulties, Down syndrome or Autism.
Dr Macdonald concluded:
“It is now clear that out of all those peers, nearly 200 of them, who spoke in the two days of debate, a majority of them are either opposed in principle to the proposed legislation or have serious reservations about it. We also welcome the 11th-hour reluctant U-turn by Lord Falconer to allow a committee to take evidence from expert groups, the Royal Medical Colleges and so forth about the many problems with the draft legislation and its impact on vulnerable people.
“It is disappointing that a piece of legislation which has life and death consequences is still only being given four days in Committee, especially when compared to other bills with less profound consequences, but judging by comments made by several peers, this bizarre and rushed timetable will almost certainly have to be changed. We fully support peers being given the time and space they need to properly scrutinise this legislation, without Government interference or pressure from the whips. If they are not given this time or are unable to fix this badly drafted legislation, then, as was made clear by several peers, there is only one option open to them. They must vote down Kim Leadbeater’s dangerous Assisted Dying Bill and focus on fixing the UK’s broken palliative care system.”
Ends
Editors Notes
Care Not Killing is a UK-based alliance bringing together human rights and disability rights organisations, health care and palliative care groups, faith-based organisations groups and thousands of concerned individuals.
We have three key aims:
- to promote more and better palliative care;
- to ensure that existing laws against euthanasia and assisted suicide are not weakened or repealed;
- to inform public opinion further against any weakening of the law.
*As this story is dealing with suicide, please could we ask that you include details about organisations that offer help and support to vulnerable people who might be feeling suicidal such as the Samaritans, CALM or similar – Thank you.*
