I have received so many emails from so many constituents on this issue from the very first time the bill was brought before the house, up to the present day. It has clearly inspired such debate and strong opinion in society, and I greatly value everyone taking the time to write in and share their own stories and views on this issue.
I have also had many people write to me about many different concerns regarding how the bill has progressed through Parliament, which I will explore later in this post.
By far the most common question I have been asked, is what my position is on the bill and what it will be the next time a vote is put before the house.
Some of you will know that my position, in the last vote was to oppose the bill. I arrived at this position after much soul searching but it was a very finely balanced choice. In my speech I outlined how my time working in A&E has actually made me sympathetic to both arguments. I've seen the pain in the eyes of relatives who want to ease the suffering of their loved ones. And I can foresee a time when I might share their pain and also want that option for myself.
But I’ve also held the hand of frail elderly people, forgotten by their families, forgotten by society and feeling themselves to be nothing but a burden. Many MPs were concerned about where this bill might leave them. This left me with a difficult dilemma.
At the end of this post I will leave links to my whole speech, which you can either read or watch. This explains more fully the issues I was weighing up to come to my decision.
I want to stress that voting against the bill does not mean I don’t continue to have enormous sympathy for those who experiencing suffering at the end of their lives. But in the end, I felt the risks to other people and to how doctors, the NHS and society manage death and dying were too great. Asking the government, through the NHS, to take responsibility for ending life instead of protecting it and the guilt and burden people might now feel they have to die was just too great of a concern. I know many people won’t agree with that.
Some concerns have been raised about the membership of the committees, not reflecting a balanced split of MPs and in turn about who has been invited to give evidence to the committee. This is because it is convention that the make-up of these committees reflects the view of the House of Commons at a bill’s second reading.
Please know that I have been keeping the thoughts of those who have got in contact to share personal experiences with me in mind when contemplating this bill.
Read the whole debate: https://hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2024-11-29/debates/796D6D96-3FCB-4B39-BD89-67B2B61086E6/TerminallyIllAdults(EndOfLife)Bill
Watch the whole debate: https://www.parliamentlive.tv/Event/Index/bc84abad-38ad-4f31-b53b-fcca5f678ba7
(The timestamp for my contribution is 14:01:09)
Kieran.