The United Kingdom’s new prime minister, Keir Starmer, has stated he will not “stand in the way” of legalizing assisted death, after noting earlier this year that he is “personally committed” to changing the current law, which outlaws assisted death.
Last month, former lord chancellor Charlie Falconer introduced legislation that would legalize assisted suicide and euthanasia. Though the bill is a Private Members Bill (PMB), which rarely becomes law, this one is unique in that Starmer has noted his support and stated he would make sure MPs have time for a free vote on the bill, which allows MPs to vote according to their conscience rather than according to party lines.
“This is such an opportunity. The last time this was voted upon, there was a clear vote against it in the Commons,” Falconer said according to The Guardian. “But of the 650 MPs who were present in 2015, 477 of them have gone. It’s a completely new House of Commons with a wholly new atmosphere, with a prime minister who is saying: ‘You must decide as a free vote – and if you decide in favour, the government will make sure that procedural stratagems don’t doom the bill.’”
Falconer also cited an increase in assisted death laws throughout the world as a sign that the UK should also change its laws.
“In the almost decade that’s gone by, there’s been a much greater focus on the issue. Lots of the rest of the world have addressed that issue and changed their laws,” he said. “But also, there’s been an ever-increasing awareness in this country of the mess that the law is. And people have become more and more interested in the quality of their lives and the quality of their deaths.”
According to Right to Life UK, Falconer has attempted numerous times to legalize assisted death, but his bills have consistently been defeated. Though some pro-suicide groups are pressuring for a change in the law, others, especially disability advocates, are warning that legalized death poses a great danger to vulnerable populations.
