Kim Leadbeater MP has formally introduced bill to legalise assisted dying - what does bill propose?

Labour MP for Spen Valley Kim Leadbeater formally introduced a bill to legalise assisted dying in England and Wales to the House of Commons on October 16.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is in favour of assisted dying, but will allow MPs to have a free vote on the matter - meaning they will not be put under pressure to vote in a certain way by the government.

The new bill will be debated and a first vote is expected on November 29.

Assisted dying: The current law

The term assisted dying is generally used to describe an instance where a person who is terminally ill seeks medical help to get lethal drugs which they administer themselves.

Assisted suicide is the act of deliberately assisting another person to end their own life. Euthanasia is the act of deliberately ending a person’s life to relieve suffering.

In English law, Euthanasia is illegal and is regarded as manslaughter or murder, with a maximum penalty of life imprisonment. Assisted suicide is illegal under the terms of the Suicide Act (1961) and is punishable by up to 14 years’ imprisonment.

Assisted dying: New bill

It is expected the bill will propose allowing terminally ill adults, with six months or less to live to receive medical help to end their life.

Kim Leadbeater MP has said there would be safeguards in place to make sure people don’t face pressure to agree to assisted dying when it is not something they want.

Dame Esther Rantzen

Broadcaster Dame Esther Rantzen, who has lung cancer and has joined Dignitas - the assisted dying clinic in Switzerland - has called for a change in the law. Speaking to the BBC, she said: “All I’m asking for is that we be given the dignity of choice”.

Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson

Former Paralympian and crossbencher in the House of Lords Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson told the BBC she is opposed over concerns "about the impact on vulnerable people, on disabled people, coercive control, and the ability of doctors to make a six-month diagnosis".