Connect with us

Published

on

Further moves to amend the controversial assisted dying bill are being made by MPs as it returns to the Commons for another day of emotionally charged debate.

After a marathon committee stage, when more than 500 amendments were debated, of which a third were agreed, the bill returns to the Commons with 130 amendments tabled.

As a result, the final and decisive votes on whether the bill clears the Commons and heads to the House of Lords are not expected until a further debate on 13 June.

The bill proposes allowing terminally ill adults with less than six months to live to receive medical assistance to die, with approval from two doctors and an expert panel.

Why is assisted dying so controversial – and where is it already legal?

In a historic vote last November, after impassioned arguments on both sides, MPs voted 330 to 275 in favour of Labour MP Kim Leadbeater’s Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill.

Sir Keir Starmer voted in favour, while Deputy PM Angela Rayner, Foreign Secretary David Lammy, Health Secretary Wes Streeting and Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood voted against.

More on Assisted Dying

The Conservatives were also split, with leader Kemi Badenoch voting in favour and former PM Rishi Sunak against. Reform UK leader Nigel Farage also voted against the bill.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Assisted dying: Care sector ‘not being heard’

The PM, who is attending a summit in Albania, will be absent this time, but asked for his current opinion, told reporters: “My views have been consistent throughout.”

No fewer than 44 of the new amendments have been tabled by Ms Leadbeater herself, with government backing, a move that has been criticised by opponents of the bill.

Opponents also claim some wavering MPs are preparing to switch from voting in favour or abstaining to voting against and it only needs 28 supporters to change their mind to kill the bill.

Confirmed switchers from voting in favour to against include Tory MPs George Freeman and Andrew Snowden, Reform UK chief whip Lee Anderson and ex-Reform MP Rupert Lowe.

Labour MP Debbie Abrahams and Tory MP Charlie Dewhirst, who abstained previously, are now against and Labour’s Karl Turner, who voted in favour at second reading, is now abstaining.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Assisted Dying Bill criticised

Mr Turner, a former barrister, told Sky News that an amendment to replace a high court judge with a panel of experts “weakens the bill” by removing judicial safeguards.

But in a boost for the bill’s supporters, Reform UK’s Runcorn and Helsby by-election winner Sarah Pochin, a former magistrate, announced she would vote in favour. Her predecessor, Labour’s Mike Amesbury, voted against.

“There are enough checks and balances in place within the legislation – with a panel of experts assessing each application to have an assisted death, made up of a senior lawyer, psychiatrist, and social worker,” said Ms Pochin, who is now the only Reform UK MP supporting the bill.

A Labour MP, Jack Abbott, who voted against in November, told Sky News he was now “more than likely” to vote for the bill, which was now in a much stronger position, he said.

Ms Leadbeater’s supporters strongly deny that the bill is at risk of collapse and are accusing its opponents of “unsubstantiated claims” and of “scare stories” that misrepresent what the bill proposes.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Two people given months to live debate assisted dying

“There is a pretty transparent attempt by opponents of the bill to try to convince MPs that there’s a big shift away from support when that simply isn’t true,” an ally of Ms Leadbeater told Sky News.

Speaking in an LBC radio phone-in on the eve of the debate on the amendments, Ms Leadbeater said she understood her bill was “an emotive issue” and there was “a lot of passion about this subject”.

But she said: “I would be prepared to be involved in a compassionate end to someone’s life if that was of their choosing. And it’s always about choice. I have friends and family who are very clear that they would want this option for themselves.

“There is overwhelming public support for a change in the law and literally everywhere I go people will stop me and say thank you for putting this forward. I would want this choice.”

Read more:
Ukrainian man charged over fires at properties and car linked to PM
An embarrassment for Starmer on migrant return hubs?

Also ahead of the debate, health minister Stephen Kinnock and justice minister Sarah Sackman wrote to all MPs defending the government’s involvement in Ms Leadbeater’s amendments to her bill.

“The government remains neutral on the passage of the bill and on the principle of assisted dying, which we have always been clear is a decision for parliament,” they wrote.

“Government has a responsibility to ensure any legislation that passes through parliament is workable, effective and enforceable.

“As such, we have provided technical, drafting support to enable the sponsor to table amendments throughout the bill’s passage. We have advised the sponsor on amendments which we deem essential or highly likely to contribute to the workability of the bill.”

Continue Reading

Politics

Cryptojacker gets 1 year prison after admitting to $3.5M fraud

Published

on

By

Cryptojacker gets 1 year prison after admitting to .5M fraud

Cryptojacker gets 1 year prison after admitting to .5M fraud

Charles O. Parks III, who admitted to misusing $3.5 million worth of resources from two cloud computing providers to mine crypto, was sentenced to one year and one day in prison.

Continue Reading

Politics

How a chaotic 24 hours unfolded ahead of Trump and Zelenskyy’s crunch White House talks

Published

on

By

How a chaotic 24 hours unfolded ahead of Trump and Zelenskyy's crunch White House talks

If there’s one thing the past 24 hours has confirmed, it’s that it’s still Donald Trump’s world, and we’re all just living in it.

In the aftermath of the Alaska meeting, the US president’s deal-making skills came under question when he seemingly walked away empty-handed.

But it was clear he had retained his ability to catch everyone off guard, as a meeting between him and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy unexpectedly became a last-minute White House peace summit.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Ukraine faces biggest challenge yet ahead of White House talks

The invitation to European leaders drifted out, and within hours, the cast list had grown to include six more, as world leaders dropped everything to fit in with Mr Trump’s unpredictable timetable.

There were signs of disorganisation behind the scenes.

When the British Prime Minister’s spokesman was asked who the invite had come from – the White House or the Ukrainian president – they replied: “A bit of both.”

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

What happened when Zelenskyy last went to White House

Read more:
The land Ukraine could be told to give up
Key takeaways from Alaska summit

Meanwhile, the meeting of the coalition of the willing – a Starmer and Macron-led group of Ukraine’s European allies – had a nervous feel to it as members resolved to stand firm with Ukraine – even if it puts them at odds with the US.

At times, it sounded like they were trying to convince themselves they could do it.

And as all of this frantic diplomatic reaction played out, the man in the middle of it all headed to the golf course – calm at the centre of the diplomatic storm he created as his allies swirl around him.

Continue Reading

Politics

Sir Keir Starmer and his allies have no choice but to keep their Trump criticisms implicit

Published

on

By

Sir Keir Starmer and his allies have no choice but to keep their Trump criticisms implicit

Sir Keir Starmer is straining his diplomatic sinews to simultaneously praise Donald Trump’s efforts to end the war in Ukraine, while repeating calls for a completely different approach – one which ends the cosy bonhomie with Vladimir Putin, threatens the Russians with sanctions, and puts the Ukrainians back centre stage.

If that’s a message which feels like quite a stretch in writing, in person, during this morning’s call of international leaders, it must have been even more awkward.

Major shift as Trump backs peace deal over ceasefire; follow latest

Donald Trump‘s public dismissal of the Europeans’ previous calls for a ceasefire – after his tete-a-tete with Putin – has only highlighted divisions.

Of course, the prime minister and his European allies have no choice but to keep their criticism of the Alaskan summit implicit, not explicit.

Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin after their private meeting in Alaska. Pic: Reuters/ Kevin Lamarque
Image:
Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin after their private meeting in Alaska. Pic: Reuters/ Kevin Lamarque

Even as they attempt to ramp up their own military preparedness to help reinforce any future peace deal, they need President Trump to lead the way in trying to force President Putin to the negotiating table – and to back up any agreement with the threat of American firepower.

For Downing Street, President Trump’s new willingness to contribute to any future security guarantee is a significant step, which Starmer claims “will be crucial in deterring Putin from coming back for more”.

It’s a commitment the prime minister has been campaigning for for months, a caveat to all the grand plans drawn up by the so-called Coalition of the Willing.

While the details are still clearly very much to be confirmed, whatever comments made by Donald Trump about his openness to help police any peace in Ukraine have been loudly welcomed by all those present, a glimmer of progress from the diplomatic mess in Anchorage.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Trump-Putin meeting: Key takeaways

Read more
Analysis: Trump is the real loser
Analysis: Indicted war criminal treated like a king
Key takeaways from the Alaska summit

Of course, the promise of security guarantees only means anything if a peace deal is actually reached.

At the moment, as the European leaders’ bluntly put it in repeating Donald Trump’s words back to him: “There’s no deal until there’s a deal.”

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Wallace: Putin ‘laughing all the way home’

Fears of Zelenskyy being painted as warmonger

There is clearly real concern in European capitals following the US president’s comments that the onus is now on Volodymyr Zelenskyy to ‘do a deal’, that the Ukrainians will come under growing pressure to make concessions to the Russians.

As former defence secretary Ben Wallace said: “Given that Donald Trump has failed to deliver a deal, his track record would show that Donald Trump then usually tries to seek to blame someone else. I’m worried that next week it could be President Zelenskyy who he will seek to blame.

“He’ll paint him as the warmonger, when in fact everybody knows it’s President Putin.”

The European leaders’ robust statements describing the “killing in Ukraine” and Russia’s “barbaric assault” are an attempt to try to counter that narrative, resetting the international response to Putin following the warmth of his welcome by President Trump – friendlier by far than that afforded to many of them, and infinitely more than the barracking President Zelenskyy received.

They’ll all be hoping to avoid a repeat of that on Monday.

Continue Reading

Trending