Kim Leadbeater appeals to critics over assisted dying bill changes

A free vote late last year narrowly passed, moving the Bill to committee stage, but there are fears among those in favour that it will be filibustered by MPs seeking to add amendments, meaning it never passes.

Spen Valley MP Kim Leadbeater told The Independent she understood she had “weeks and weeks” of work ahead after the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill committee scrutinised the proposal line-by-line.

“What I wouldn’t want to see… (is) people try and put so many amendments in that we don’t end up getting to third reading,” she said. “But most MPs I’ve spoken to this week understand the parliamentary process.”

The process allows amendments to be made throughout a Bill’s passage, provided they do not deal with sections that have been discussed.

The Labour MP also warned that situations where people go abroad to end their lives with no scrutiny leave the door open for unethical situations.

“You’ve got people now who are terminally ill who are taking their own lives,” she explained. “You’ve got people going to Dignitas, and we have no idea whether they’ve been coerced into it.”

Ms Leadbeater also spoke about the concern raised last week when the requirement for a high court judge was dropped. She said: “I think with those MPs who have genuine concerns, including me, we’ve got to get it right.”

The MP said the move would strengthen the legislation following concerns expressed during expert evidence sessions last month.

But in a statement issued last week, 10 of her Labour colleagues said the “promise of High Court scrutiny of each application for assisted dying” had been a central part of Ms Leadbeater’s pitch to MPs at the end of last year.

The group, all of whom voted against the Bill when it first came before the Commons in November, said: “Supporters of the Bill insisted that it was a key part of the protections for vulnerable and marginalised people. Yet despite repeated assurances until just days ago, the proponents of the Bill have changed their argument – and fundamentally changed the Bill.

“All MPs have an important job to do to make sure that the Assisted Dying Bill is fit for purpose. Yet the process feels chaotic, with the Bill changing significantly from what was presented to Parliament at second reading.”

The statement was backed by MPs Florence Eshalomi, Dame Meg Hillier, Antonia Bance, Jess Asato, James Frith, Paulette Hamilton, Adam Jogee, David Smith, Yasmin Qureshi and Melanie Ward.