Dignity in Dying

24 Apr

This is not the end. We won't stop fighting until every dying person has choice.

BREAKING: Isle of Man becomes the second Crown Dependency to legalise assisted dying. It comes after Jersey received Royal Assent for its own Assisted Dying Bill earlier this year. The milestone is a tribute to the Manx families who campaigned for years for a change in the law.

The question for Westminster now is how much longer will dying people in England and Wales be made to wait.

dignityindying.org.ukAssisted dying legalised in Isle of Man - Dignity in DyingBereaved families celebrate historic day as island becomes second Crown Dependency to legalise end-of-life choice

Terminally ill people in the Isle of Man and Jersey now have a choice that is denied to dying people just a short journey away in Liverpool, London or Cardiff. That is not a sustainable position.

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We are deeply saddened by the death of Dame Esther Rantzen. A true force of nature, Dame Esther fought throughout her life for people’s rights, and latterly for dying people who needed more choice and compassion. Our heartfelt condolences are with her family and loved ones.

www.dignityindying.org.uk/news/dignity...

dignityindying.org.ukDignity in Dying responds to the news of the death of Dame Esther Rantzen - Dignity in DyingDame Esther was a true force of nature whose compassion, tenacity and wit will be greatly missed. Our heartfelt condolences are with her family and loved ones.

As long as dying people are denied the choice and protection they need, we will be here to fight for them.

As long as dying people are denied the choice and protection they need, we will be here to fight for them.

As long as dying people are denied the choice and protection they need, we will be here to fight for them.

@sarahwootton.bsky.social

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Sarah Wootton

16 Sept

Thank you for your courage @kimleadbeatermp.bsky.social It has been a privilege to campaign alongside you over the last two years. @dignityindying.org.uk

Kim Leadbeater MBE MP@kimleadbeatermp.bsky.social

I have reflected at length about what happened in Parliament on Friday. Thank you to everyone who has contacted me with their heartbreaking personal stories and campaigned on this issue for far too long. I am so sorry. Please see my statement below. Many thanks, Kim

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Kim Leadbeater MBE MP

@kimleadbeatermp.bsky.social

16 Sept

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Lauren Edwards MP

@laurenedwardsmp.bsky.social

12 Sept

My statement following the defeat of the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill in the House of Commons. This is hugely disappointing for thousands of terminally ill people and their loved ones. The law as it stands is simply too cruel and unjust.

Moments ago MPs voted against Lauren Edwards MP’s assisted dying bill, by 286 to 270.

We pay tribute to dying people and their families, who will feel the weight of this decision most heavily, and the thousands of supporters campaigning for choice.

We also want to thank Lauren Edwards and every MP who stood with dying people today, as well as Kim Leadbeater MP and Lord Falconer for their years of tireless work on this issue. Today's result only strengthens our resolve to keep fighting for a safer, more compassionate law.

Moments ago MPs voted against Lauren Edwards MP’s assisted dying bill, by 286 to 270.

This debate is not hypothetical - assisted dying has been legalised in Jersey and the Isle of Man, where some terminally ill Britons will be able to access assisted dying as soon as next year, while those in England and Wales will be denied the same choice.

Today’s vote should have never been needed. MPs passed the bill last year by a clear majority, before a handful of unelected Peers stalled it to a halt in the House of Lords - not through honest debate but through procedural game-playing. The public deserves better.

Moments ago MPs voted against Lauren Edwards MP’s assisted dying bill, by 286 to 270.

This is a devastating setback for dying people - but make no mistake, this issue is not going away. Law change on assisted dying remains a matter of when - not if. The British public demands that Parliament listen, and terminally ill people and families will not rest until they do.

National Centre for Social Research

Lauren Edwards MP kicks off today’s debate on the assisted dying bill.

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@natcen.bsky.social

@laurenedwardsmp.bsky.social

.#BritishSocialAttitudes has tracked views on assisted dying for three decades. As parliamentarians return to this debate, see what the BSA has been showing for the past three decades ⬇️

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Lauren Edwards MP

buff.lyLauren Edwards on assisted dying, the Parliament Act – and disappointment with Keir Starmer - Politics.co.ukLauren Edwards didn’t expect to be in this position. The Labour MP tasked with hauling the assisted dying bill back through the House of Commons was on a conference call about local government…

Great to speak to Politics.co.uk ahead of today’s Second Reading of the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill. In the interview, I set out why this legislation matters, the issues we need to address, and why getting it right is so important. Read more👇 buff.ly/VlK6SXd

"MPs: turn up tomorrow and use your vote. Refuse to allow a handful of unelected Lords to block a bill passed by the Commons and supported for years by 75% of the public." @pollytoynbee.bsky.social makes an impassioned plea to MPs - do the right thing and vote for compassionate choice.

theguardian.comMy plea to MPs: this is the final chance to save the assisted dying bill. Make your mark on history | Polly ToynbeeAny MP not voting for it on Friday will condemn thousands of us to die in agony. The public is hugely in favour too, so do the right thing, says Guardian columnist Polly Toynbee

"My plea to MPs is to finish what they started and support the bill. Although this is about death, the ending of a life, the comfort of knowing assisted dying was an option would allow me to live, whatever time I have left, in peace."

Elise Sargent from Portsmouth, who has stage 4 cancer, explains why she wants to see MPs vote through the assisted dying bill on Friday.

portsmouth.co.ukI'm 45 with terminal cancer - MPs should vote the assisted dying bill throughElise Sargent from Portsmouth, who has stage 4 cancer, explains why she wants to see MPs vote through the assisted dying bill on Friday

If we want to make choice at the end of life safe, we need to take assisted dying out of the shadows. Tag your MP below 👇👇

dignityindying.org.ukWhy legalising assisted dying is safer than the status quo - Dignity in DyingDebate about assisted dying rightly focuses on safeguards. But any proposed law must be compared with what happens now.

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TheFirstGirlySwotsToJoinBlueSky

@thelastgirlyswots.bsky.social

@tomshakespeare.bsky.social

Replying to @dignityindying.org.uk

. Yes Brian and Den are right - and the majority of Brits support the right for terminally ill adults to choose assisted dying if they wish to. We hope MPs are listening! #PoliticsLive #Wato #assisteddying .

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Tom Shakespeare

Replying to @danielgover.bsky.social

MPs supported Assisted Dying (Leadbeater Bill) only to have Peers wreck the Bill by tabling vexatious amendments. Most people in the country, including disabled people, support it. About time it passed, not least for the sake of democracy.

Brian has incurable cancer. As a young man, he watched a relative suffer at the end of life despite pain relief. All he wants is the choice to avoid the same situation for himself.

Today we launch our new report - Out of the Shadows: Why legalising assisted dying is safer than the status quo.

MPs and Peers must comprehend the context of what is happening right now - to understand why they must back the assisted dying bill.

f.mtr.coolWhy legalising assisted dying is safer than the status quo - Dignity in DyingDebate about assisted dying rightly focuses on safeguards. But any proposed law must be compared with what happens now.

Today we launch our new report - Out of the Shadows: Why legalising assisted dying is safer than the status quo.

In the absence of an assisted dying law, the report finds that terminally ill people are taking their own lives while receiving specialist palliative care, and doctors are already operating in a legal grey area to support patients seeking an assisted death abroad - with no guidance or protection.

Moreover, only around 1 in 6 recorded cases of assisted suicide ever reach the DPP's desk - with most cases dropped by police due to a lack of evidence, rather than compassionate discretion. This is what is happening - and will continue to happen - in the absence of an assisted dying law.

Today we launch our new report - Out of the Shadows: Why legalising assisted dying is safer than the status quo.

It comes to a clear conclusion: the choice MPs and Peers are facing is between the status quo, with no oversight at all, and a tried and tested assisted dying law, with oversight and regulation at its heart.

Malcolm and Val had been married for 52 years. Val had been following the progress of the assisted dying bill closely as she had advanced MS. Six days after Val expressed her dismay that the assisted dying Bill had fallen in April, Malcolm woke to find his wife deeply unconscious.

He was held in custody for more than 12 hours, and provided with no updates on his wife's condition. Around 36 hours after his arrest, police confirmed that no further action would be taken against him and withdrew his bail. Val died on 4 May 2026.

The current law creates secrecy, fear and trauma. This Friday, MPs can replace it with dignity, compassion and choice.

The notes she left expressed her intention to end her life and explained why she felt she had to make her plans in secret due to the lack of assisted dying legislation. Malcolm was then arrested and treated like a criminal when he was a grieving husband.

“No family should have to endure what ours did”: grieving husband urges MPs to back assisted dying bill as new report exposes hidden toll of terminal illness suicides.

f.mtr.cool“No family should have to endure what ours did” - Dignity in DyingGrieving husband urges MPs to back assisted dying bill as new report exposes hidden toll of terminal illness suicides

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Lauren Edwards MP

@laurenedwardsmp.bsky.social