A debate around the topic of assisted dying will return to Parliament, which may bring up some terms people are unfamiliar with.
Labour MP Kim Leadbeater is introducing a private member’s bill to legalise assisted dying in England and Wales.
This bill will get its second reading, involving an MPs’ vote, on November 29.
If it passes, the bill will be scrutinised by a parliamentary committee, when MPs can table amendments, The Guardian reports.
Labour MP @kimleadbeater will introduce her Assisted Dying Bill to the Commons today for First Reading. It is a procedural formality with no debate or vote - that’ll come in November - but a significant step for those who believe this bill has a significant chance of passing.
— Paul Brand (@PaulBrandITV) October 16, 2024
Meanwhile, earlier this year in Scotland Liberal Democrat MSP Liam McArthur drafted the Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill.
If passed by MSPs, it would allow terminally ill adults to request assistance to end their life.
Here's everything you need to know on what assisted dying, assisted suicide and euthanasia mean, plus what the law currently is.
What does assisted dying mean?
This, and the language used, varies depending on who you ask.
Pro-change campaigners Dignity in Dying say that assisted dying allows a person with a terminal condition the choice to control their death if they decide their suffering is unbearable.
"It's not about ending their lives, but shortening their deaths."
— LBC (@LBC) October 16, 2024
Labour MP Kim Leadbeater, who's bringing the Assisted Dying Bill into Parliament, tells @NickFerrariLBC what safeguarding measures would be put in place to ensure it's a 'safe and robust piece of legislation'. pic.twitter.com/ybCe1Mua6W
They argue that, along with good care, dying people who are terminally ill and mentally competent adults deserve the choice to control the timing and manner of their death.
But the campaign group Care Not Killing uses the terms “assisted suicide” and “euthanasia”, and argues that the focus should be on “promoting more and better palliative care” rather than any law change.
They say legalising assisted dying could “place pressure on vulnerable people to end their lives for fear of being a financial, emotional or care burden upon others” and argue the disabled, elderly, sick or depressed could be especially at risk.
What does assisted suicide mean?
Assisted suicide is intentionally helping another person to end their life. It can involve people who are not terminally ill, BBC News reports.
Providing someone with a lethal dose of sedatives or helping them go to Switzerland - where assisted suicide is legal - could both be considered assisted suicide.
"I know from being a clinician... so many people saying 'I'm just going to take myself of the equation, I don't want to trouble my family.'"
— BBC Newsnight (@BBCNewsnight) October 15, 2024
Labour MP Rachael Maskell says she is worried about people opting for assisted dying because they do not want to be a burden.#Newsnight pic.twitter.com/4QNw8KlvIi
What does euthanasia mean?
Euthanasia is the act of deliberately ending a person's life, to relieve suffering in which a lethal drug is administered by a physician, BBC News reports.
It is legal in fewer places than assisted dying or assisted suicide and patients do not necessarily have to be terminally ill.
BBC News adds: "There are two types, external: voluntary euthanasia, where a patient has given consent, and non-voluntary, where they have not been able to, for example if they are in a coma."
Recommended reading:
What is the current law?
Assisted suicide is banned in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, with a maximum prison sentence of 14 years.
In Scotland, it is not a specific criminal offence but assisting the death of someone can leave a person open to being charged with murder or other offences.
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