Latest news with #DavidWalker
The Hindu
9 hours ago
- Health
- The Hindu
UK MPs debate assisted dying law ahead of key vote
British lawmakers debated whether to allow assisted dying for terminally ill people ahead of a knife-edge vote Friday that could see the country take a major step towards legalising euthanasia. Protesters for and against the legislation demonstrated outside parliament, as inside MPs packed out the lower House of Commons chamber to consider one of Britain's most emotive and significant bills in years. MPs will either approve sending the legislation to the upper House of Lords for the next step -- and further scrutiny -- or end it entirely during a crucial vote expected around 2:30 pm (1330 GMT). Labour MP Kim Leadbeater, who has proposed the bill, said changing the law would "offer a compassionate and safe choice" for terminally ill people. The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill would allow assisted suicide in England and Wales for adults with an incurable illness who have a life expectancy of fewer than six months. They would have to be able to administer the life-ending substance themselves, and any patient's wish to die would have to be signed off by two doctors and a panel of experts. A change in the law would see Britain emulate several other countries in Europe and elsewhere that allow some form of assisted dying, including Belgium and the Netherlands. Advert ban Supporters say euthanasia would give the terminally ill greater protections and choice at the end of their lives, but critics worry that vulnerable people could be coerced into dying. Outside in Parliament Square, protesters waved placards with slogans including "Let us choose" and "Don't make doctors killers". David Walker, 82, said he supported changing the law because he saw his wife of 60 years suffer for three years at the end of her life. "That's why I'm here, because I can't help her anymore, but I can help other people who are going through the same thing, because if you have no quality of life, you have nothing," he told AFP. Elizabeth Burden, a 52-year-old doctor, said she feared the bill could open "a floodgate" of people being forced to end their lives and urged the government to focus on providing palliative care instead. "It is a slippery slope. Once we allow this. Everything will slip down because dementia patients, all patients... are vulnerable," she told AFP. A YouGov poll of 2,003 adults, surveyed last month and published on Thursday, suggested the public overwhelmingly supports changing the law, with 73 percent in favour. MPs backed the proposed legislation by 330 to 275 votes at an initial vote in parliament last November. Since then the bill has undergone several changes, including applying a ban on adverts for assisted dying and allowing all health workers to opt out of helping someone end their life. MPs have also added a safeguard which would prevent a person being eligible "solely as a result of voluntarily stopping eating or drinking", ruling out people with anorexia. Several lawmakers in the 650-seat parliament have subsequently switched positions and parties are not telling them how to vote, making the outcome difficult to predict. Undecideds An ITV News tracker of around half the parliamentarians estimates that 162 MPs plan to vote for changing the law, with 152 against. Some 22 remain undecided with another 23 due to abstain. Both the House of Commons and the House of Lords need to approve the legislation before the end of the current parliamentary year, likely sometime in the autumn, or the bill will fail. If it passes and receives royal assent, then it would be four years before an assisted dying service is implemented. A government impact assessment published this month estimated that approximately 160 to 640 assisted deaths could take place in the first year, rising to a possible 4,500 in a decade. If he votes, Prime Minister Keir Starmer is expected to vote in favour but several of his top ministerial team, including the health and justice secretaries, have publicly opposed changing the law. Assisted suicide currently carries a maximum prison sentence of 14 years in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Separate legislation is going through the devolved Scottish parliament, while the Isle of Man at the end of March became the first British territory to pass an assisted dying bill. UK MPs last considered changing the law in 2015 and Leadbeater warned it could be another decade before the issue returns to parliament if MPs reject her bill.
Straits Times
10 hours ago
- Health
- Straits Times
UK MPs debate assisted dying law ahead of key vote
Protesters for and against the assisted dying Bill demonstrated outside Parliament in London on June 13. PHOTO: EPA-EFE LONDON - British lawmakers debated whether to allow assisted dying for terminally ill people ahead of a knife-edge vote on June 20 that could see the country take a major step towards legalising euthanasia. Protesters for and against the legislation demonstrated outside Parliament , as inside MPs packed out the lower House of Commons Chamber to consider one of Britain's most emotive and significant bills in years. MPs will either approve sending the legislation to the upper House of Lords for the next step – and further scrutiny – or end it entirely during a crucial vote expected around 2.30pm in London (9.30pm Singapore time). Labour MP Kim Leadbeater, who has proposed the Bill , said changing the law would 'offer a compassionate and safe choice' for terminally ill people. The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill would allow assisted suicide in England and Wales for adults with an incurable illness who have a life expectancy of fewer than six months. They would have to be able to administer the life-ending substance themselves, and any patient's wish to die would have to be signed off by two doctors and a panel of experts. A change in the law would see Britain emulate several other countries in Europe and elsewhere that allow some form of assisted dying, including Belgium and the Netherlands. Advertisement ban Supporters say euthanasia would give the terminally ill greater protections and choice at the end of their lives, but critics worry that vulnerable people could be coerced into dying. Outside in Parliament Square, protesters waved placards with slogans including 'Let us choose' and 'Don't make doctors killers'. Mr David Walker, 82, said he supported changing the law because he saw his wife of 60 years suffer for three years at the end of her life. 'That's why I'm here, because I can't help her anymore, but I can help other people who are going through the same thing, because if you have no quality of life, you have nothing,' he told AFP. 52-year-old doctor Elizabeth Burden said she feared the Bill could open 'a floodgate' of people being forced to end their lives and urged the government to focus on providing palliative care instead. 'It is a slippery slope. Once we allow this. Everything will slip down because dementia patients, all patients... are vulnerable,' she told AFP. Labour MP Kim Leadbeater argues that changing the law will 'offer a compassionate and safe choice' for terminally ill people. A YouGov poll of 2,003 adults, surveyed in May and published on June 19 , suggested the public overwhelmingly supports changing the law, with 73 per cent in favour. MPs backed the proposed legislation by 330 to 275 votes at an initial vote in Parliament in November 2024. Since then , the Bill has undergone several changes, including applying a ban on advertisements for assisted dying and allowing all health workers to opt out of helping someone end their life. MPs have also added a safeguard which would prevent a person being eligible 'solely as a result of voluntarily stopping eating or drinking', ruling out people with anorexia. Several lawmakers in the 650-seat Parliament have subsequently switched positions, and parties are not telling them how to vote, making the outcome difficult to predict. Undecideds An ITV News tracker of around half the parliamentarians estimates that 162 MPs plan to vote for changing the law, with 152 against. Some 22 remain undecided , with another 23 due to abstain. Both the House of Commons and the House of Lords need to approve the legislation before the end of the current parliamentary year, likely sometime in the autumn, or the Bill will fail. If it passes and receives royal assent, then it would be four years before an assisted dying service is implemented. A government impact assessment published in June estimated that approximately 160 to 640 assisted deaths could take place in the first year, rising to a possible 4,500 in a decade. If he votes, Prime Minister Keir Starmer is expected to vote in favour , but several of his top ministerial team, including the health and justice secretaries, have publicly opposed changing the law. Assisted suicide currently carries a maximum prison sentence of 14 years in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Separate legislation is going through the devolved Scottish Parliament , while the Isle of Man at the end of March became the first British territory to pass an assisted dying bill. UK MPs last considered changing the law in 2015 and Ms Leadbeater warned it could be another decade before the issue returns to Parliament if MPs reject her Bill . AFP Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Spectator
4 days ago
- Politics
- Spectator
Listen: Bishop of Manchester's bizarre grooming gang speech
Well, well, well. Ahead of the publication of Baroness Casey's findings after her review into Britain's grooming gang scandal this afternoon, the Beeb invited a rather curious speaker on for the Radio 4 Today programme's 'Thought of the Day'. The Bishop of Manchester, Reverend David Walker, made a rather bizarre statement on the show today as he chose to centre his contribution on the gangs: This is not a pattern of offending confined to any particular ethnic cultural or religious group. I hope that the forthcoming inquiry will help us find ways to keep young girls safe from the groups of predatory older men, whatever their origin. But it is a natural human tendency to want to think that such horrendous crimes are only carried out by people who are not like us. Whilst gangs may dominate the news headlines, child protection experts affirm that the vast majority of child sexual exploitation is committed by the victim's close family members or family friends. In fact, Pakistani men are up to five times as likely to be responsible for child sex grooming offences than the general population, according to figures from the Hydrant Programme, which investigates child sex abuse. Around one in 73 Muslim men over 16 have been prosecuted for 'group-localised child sexual exploitation' in Rotherham, research by academics from the universities of Reading and Chichester has revealed. Indeed, after Reverend Walker's speech, presenter Nick Robinson noted the new national inquiry announced by Sir Keir Starmer was into grooming gangs constituted 'of men of largely Pakistani heritage'. Listen to the full clip here:
Wall Street Journal
5 days ago
- Business
- Wall Street Journal
DOGE Needs a New Strategy After Elon Musk
David Walker, former comptroller general of the U.S., makes the case that 'DOGE Has Work Left to Do' (op-ed, June 10) after Elon Musk's departure. It appears that Mr. Musk and his associates relied in large part on analysis of large databases to determine if waste, fraud and abuse were present, without actually deploying boots on the ground to interview those involved. Such database analysis provides useful information but not definitive answers about individual circumstances. When I worked as a special agent for the Government Accountability Office, I was assigned to interview an administrative law judge who appeared to be collecting disability payments from Social Security despite his having returned to his federal job after heart surgery. The judge readily admitted to it. I asked why he didn't inform Social Security of his return to work, to which he responded that he had, several times. He had saved the letters and made note of the numerous phone calls too. I asked why he didn't return the Social Security checks, but he said that the payments had been directly deposited into his bank account and that he was ready to return all the money once someone told him how to do so.
Scotsman
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
Oasis' Liam Gallagher takes aim at Edinburgh Council after ‘fat and rowdy' comments
Oasis frontman Liam Gallagher has criticised the City of Edinburgh Council after safety briefing papers appeared to label fans of the band as overweight, old and 'rowdy'. Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... The Scottish Sun were first to report on the council documents that described Oasis fans as mainly 'middle-aged men' who 'take up more room' adding there were concerns 'about the safety of the Fringe and its performers'. The safety briefing notes added: 'There is concern about crowds ... as they are already rowdy ... and the tone of the band.' The documents also warned of 'medium to high intoxication' and a 'substantial amount of older fans'. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad It comes after details from the briefings were published by the City of Edinburgh Council following a Freedom of Information request. The reported statements appear in the minutes from a safety advisory group meeting on October 23 last year. Oasis frontman Liam Gallagher has criticised the City of Edinburgh Council after safety briefing papers appeared to label fans of the band as overweight, old and 'rowdy'. | AFP via Getty Images Oasis are set to play three sold out gigs at Murrayfield Stadium on August 8, 9 and 12 with tens of thousands of fans attending each performance. The summer dates will go ahead when the capital is already packed with residents and tourists during the Edinburgh festival period. Reacting to the news, Liam Gallagher wrote on social media: 'To the Edinburgh council I've heard what you said about OASIS fans and quite frankly your attitude f***ing stinks I'd leave town that day if I was any of you lot.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The Britpop legend later added: 'I'd love to see a picture of all the people on the Edinburgh council bet there's some real STUNING individuals.' David Walker, 44, from the Oasis Collectors Group, told the Scottish Sun: 'To call fans drunk, middle-aged and fat is a nasty, sneering stereotype — it's a jaundiced view. 'People want to have a great time. If reports of councillors' drunken parties are anything to go by, they'd be better keeping their opinions to themselves. "The fanbase has changed a lot - there's a new generation of young fans for a start, and parents are wanting to introduce their kids to Oasis for the first time. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad "If reports of Edinburgh councillors' drunken parties are anything to go by, then they'd be better keeping their opinions to themselves. The return of Oasis will be hugely exciting for the city - everyone just needs to roll with it." Edinburgh culture convener Margaret Graham said: 'We're very proud to host the biggest and best events in Edinburgh throughout the year, which bring in hundreds of millions of pounds to the local economy and provide unparalleled entertainment for our residents and visitors. 'As with any major event which takes place in the city, we prepare extensively alongside our partners to ensure the safety and best possible experience of everyone involved – and Oasis are no different. No two events are the same in terms of requirements or planning and our multi-agency approach reflects this appropriately. 'We're also working closely with residents in the local area to make sure these concerts pass off as smoothly as possible. Over the past few years, we've hosted many similar events and managed to strike the right balance between communicating well with residents and fulfilling the needs of major events and I have no doubt we can do so once again. We always look to learn lessons from previous years to update and improve on our plans. 'We're all looking forward to seeing Oasis take to the stage this August and I'm sure that they'll 'live forever' as some of the most memorable concerts ever performed at Murrayfield.'
