Latest news with #DeclanGanley
The Independent
16 hours ago
- Health
- The Independent
Assisted dying bill: Why this momentous vote remains so uncertain
The third reading and final Commons vote on Kim Leadbeater's Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill on Friday marks a truly historic moment for parliament. The stakes are so high that entrepreneur Declan Ganley has offered a private ambulance to MP Sorcha Eastwood, who is ill with Covid, to get her to the Commons to vote against the Bill. No wonder. It has been almost six decades since MPs have considered a Bill that would cause such a profound and fundamental change in the state's relationship with individuals and society's attitude to life and death. An historic vote In December Ms Leadbeater won a 55 majority on the second reading vote of her Bill, dealing with the principle rather than details, and is expected to carry a reduced majority today, although that is less certain than it was before. If she is successful then the state, for the first time, will be licensed to end people's lives if they wish it and if the circumstances allow. Doctors will be allowed to offer it as an alternative to people who have been given six months left to live. What factors will MPs be considering? The lack of certainty on the vote is partly fueled by the fact that a number of MPs who voted for the principle made it clear that they were allowing the debate to be had and would reserve judgment on the final vote. The debate in fact has moved on from one of principle - which only a minority oppose - to one of practicalities. The questions faced by MPs include: Can such a law be introduced to allow those with genuine terminal illnesses who wish to end their lives to do so without exposing the weak, poor and vulnerable to coercion to end their lives? Can the so-called tight restrictions be prevented from expanding beyond that through medical practice, judicial intervention or further legislation? Will this end up being a means for saving costs on the care centre and the NHS? Are the safeguards strong enough to ensure that the new law will not be abused? What will be the impact on hospices and end of life care? MPs changing their minds The reason that the vote has become tighter is because a growing number of MPs are concerned about the potential answers to those questions. The only issue will be whether that is enough to block the Bill. Based on votes on the amendments as well as known supporters and opponents, the predictive voting model used by opponents of assisted dying gives Ms Leadbeater a majority of up to 15, ranging to a defeat of the Bill by a majority of five. Very close. Key to the debate will not be the heartbreaking stories of people suffering in their final months, or celebrity voices like Esther Rantzen. They have already had their effect. More important will be the big change to the Bill brought by Ms Leadbeater which means a judge in court will not have to sign off, as originally laid out in the second reading vote. Instead, there will be an expert panel led by a judge or KC but not with the same legal authority. It is worth noting that the judicial safeguard was cited by more than 100 MPs in the first debate. The 'slippery slope' argument The other issue at play will be whether this Bill is a full stop to the issue or is something that will unleash a loosening up of the law over time. The lesson from the then Liberal MP David Steel's abortion legislation in 1967 will play a part in the decision-making of a number of MPs, who will be considering the so-called 'slippery slope' issue of an apparently tightly worded piece of legislation expanding its reach over time. Just this week we have seen MPs vote by a large majority to decriminalise abortion – effectively allowing it up to birth without criminal consequences from the 24 weeks (six months) already legislated for. But more important will be the experience of other countries where assisted dying has been legalised. Ms Leadbeater has been at pains that this is a specifically British Bill. However, in Canada, Oregon in the US, the Netherlands, and New South Wales in Australia the legislation has expanded beyond terminal illness to include mental health and other issues. Ms Leadbeater in fact highlighted a case of a couple who decided to end their own lives in Australia after 70 years of marriage even though terminal illness was not a factor. How the debate will unfold She will argue on Friday though that her Bill has been strengthened since November. Opponents will point out that she has rejected safeguards on eating disorders, mental health, the requirement of people actually suffering pain and many other apparently reasonable checks to the process. Attempts to restrict assisted death advertising were brushed aside. An attempt to protect hospices from offering assisted dying were dismissed. She had also opposed an amendment preventing doctors recommending assisted dying to children, the one defeat she has suffered so far. Many have consistently argued that a private members bill is not sufficient to debate something that will have such a profound effect on the country. Indeed, 52 Labour MPs asked Keir Starmer, a supporter of assisted dying, to give more time for further scrutiny, an appeal he rejected. The issue today will be whether all these questions and issues will mean there are enough MPs to have second thoughts from their vote in November to overturn a 55-majority. If the Bill is defeated then it will not come back before the next election, if Ms Leadbeater wins then it will have cleared its most important hurdle and a battle in the Lords awaits where many of the issues will be debated again.
The Independent
a day ago
- Health
- The Independent
Assisted dying: Why this momentous vote – with such far-reaching consequences
The third reading and final Commons vote on Kim Leadbeater's Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill on Friday marks a truly historic moment for parliament. The stakes are so high that entrepreneur Declan Ganley has offered a private ambulance to MP Sorcha Eastwood, who is ill with Covid, to get her to the Commons to vote against the Bill. No wonder. It has been almost six decades since MPs have considered a Bill that would cause such a profound and fundamental change in the state's relationship with individuals and society's attitude to life and death. An historic vote In December Ms Leadbeater won a 55 majority on the second reading vote of her Bill, dealing with the principle rather than details, and is expected to carry a reduced majority today, although that is less certain than it was before. If she is successful then the state, for the first time, will be licensed to end people's lives if they wish it and if the circumstances allow. Doctors will be allowed to offer it as an alternative to people who have been given six months left to live. What factors will MPs be considering? The lack of certainty on the vote is partly fueled by the fact that a number of MPs who voted for the principle made it clear that they were allowing the debate to be had and would reserve judgment on the final vote. The debate in fact has moved on from one of principle - which only a minority oppose - to one of practicalities. The questions faced by MPs include: Can such a law be introduced to allow those with genuine terminal illnesses who wish to end their lives to do so without exposing the weak, poor and vulnerable to coercion to end their lives? Can the so-called tight restrictions be prevented from expanding beyond that through medical practice, judicial intervention or further legislation? Will this end up being a means for saving costs on the care centre and the NHS? Are the safeguards strong enough to ensure that the new law will not be abused? MPs changing their minds The reason that the vote has become tighter is because a growing number of MPs are concerned about the potential answers to those questions. The only issue will be whether that is enough to block the Bill. Based on votes on the amendments as well as known supporters and opponents, the predictive voting model used by opponents of assisted dying gives Ms Leadbeater a majority of up to 15, ranging to a defeat of the Bill by a majority of five. Very close. Key to the debate will not be the heartbreaking stories of people suffering in their final months, or celebrity voices like Esther Rantzen. They have already had their effect. More important will be the big change to the Bill brought by Ms Leadbeater which means a judge in court will not have to sign off, as originally laid out in the second reading vote. Instead, there will be an expert panel led by a judge or KC but not with the same legal authority. It is worth noting that the judicial safeguard was cited by more than 100 MPs in the first debate. The 'slippery slope' argument The other issue at play will be whether this Bill is a full stop to the issue or is something that will unleash a loosening up of the law over time. The lesson from the then Liberal MP David Steel's abortion legislation in 1967 will play a part in the decision-making of a number of MPs, who will be considering the so-called 'slippery slope' issue of an apparently tightly worded piece of legislation expanding its reach over time. Just this week we have seen MPs vote by a large majority to decriminalise abortion – effectively allowing it up to birth without criminal consequences from the 24 weeks (six months) already legislated for. But more important will be the experience of other countries where assisted dying has been legalised. Ms Leadbeater has been at pains that this is a specifically British Bill. However, in Canada, Oregon in the US, the Netherlands, and New South Wales in Australia the legislation has expanded beyond terminal illness to include mental health and other issues. Ms Leadbeater in fact highlighted a case of a couple who decided to end their own lives in Australia after 70 years of marriage even though terminal illness was not a factor. How the debate will unfold She will argue on Friday though that her Bill has been strengthened since November. Opponents will point out that she has rejected safeguards on eating disorders, mental health, the requirement of people actually suffering pain and many other apparently reasonable checks to the process. She had also opposed an amendment preventing doctors recommending assisted dying to children, the one defeat she has suffered so far. Many have consistently argued that a private members bill is not sufficient to debate something that will have such a profound effect on the country. Indeed, 52 Labour MPs asked Keir Starmer, a supporter of assisted dying, to give more time for further scrutiny, an appeal he rejected. The issue today will be whether all these questions and issues will mean there are enough MPs to have second thoughts from their vote in November to overturn a 55-majority. If the Bill is defeated then it will not come back before the next election, if Ms Leadbeater wins then it will have cleared its most important hurdle and a battle in the Lords awaits where many of the issues will be debated again.
The Independent
a day ago
- Health
- The Independent
MP offered private ambulance to parliament amid fears assisted dying bill could come down to one vote
An MP has been offered the use of a private ambulance to bring her to parliament amid fears the hugely controversial assisted dying bill could come down to just a single vote. Sorcha Eastwood, a Northern Irish MP, announced earlier this week that she was unable to travel to Westminster for the crunch vote because she has Covid. She has spoken out passionately against the proposed bill, but said she did not want to put others at risk of contracting the illness. In response, the entrepreneur Declan Ganley contacted her on social media to offer to arrange transport in a private ambulance. Earlier, the MP had posted on social media: 'My heart is genuinely breaking that I can't vote tomorrow'. She said she did not believe the bill was 'competent - either in law or the societal ramifications'. Since the offer, she has posted photographs of her most recent Covid tests and said that if she tests negative on Thursday night, she will travel to Parliament for the vote. The bill is on a knife-edge, with campaigners on both sides making their final pitches to wavering MPs. MPs are sometimes 'paired' on key votes, in a system that allows two MPs with opposing positions to both miss the vote, without affecting the outcome. However, this only applies to government bills - which the assisted dying bill is not. On Thursday night, four Labour MPs Markus Campbell-Savours, Kanishka Narayan, Paul Foster and Jonathan Hinder announced they were switching their votes from yes to no. More than 60 disability organisations also wrote to MPs highlighting concerns over the potential impact of the legislation on those with learning disabilities. They cited polling commissioned by the Down's Syndrome Research Foundation, which found major fears about how people with learning disabilities could express informed consent when applying for assisted suicide. Three-quarters of the public raised concerns about the prospect of disabled people being able to consent, the polling found. It also found that nearly seven in 10 people fear those with learning disabilities may be particularly vulnerable to the risk of coercion or manipulation into an assisted suicide if the bill passes. The MP who brought the bill, Kim Leadbeater, made her own last-minute plea to MPs to support her assisted dying bill, warning that if it is rejected on Friday, terminally ill adults could face a 10-year wait before the issue is debated again. Campaigners against the legislation made a last-ditch call for a delay to the crunch final vote, with 52 Labour backbenchers asking Sir Keir Starmer to step in and give MPs more time to scrutinise the bill. But the prime minister rejected the call, saying there 'has been a lot of time discussing it, both in parliament and beyond parliament'. If the bill passes its final stage on Friday, it will then go to the House of Lords, where peers have warned that they intend to heavily scrutinise the legislation.
Irish Independent
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Irish Independent
Letters: Leave our ambassador in Israel, but continue the protests against genocide
On Tuesday, the disgusting statement by Israeli finance minister Bezalel Smotrich that 'Gaza will be entirely destroyed' follow an Israeli security cabinet decision to approve Operation Gideon's Chariots, which an unnamed Israeli official called 'the conquest of the Gaza Strip and the holding of the territories'. For this reason alone it is important that Ireland has an ambassador in Israel to document the slaughter of men, women and children, and to bring the objections of the Government and people of Ireland to the attention of the Israeli government. Under the premiership of Benjamin Netanyahu, it appears to all intents and purposes hell-bent on a genocide of the legal inhabitants of the Gaza Strip. Such an act of attrition is no different from the Holocaust of the Jewish people throughout World War II. Recalling the ambassador would be falsely interpreted as an antisemitic act. Rather, the Irish Government must reinforce its opposition to the genocide of human beings by the government of Israel. We witness daily the broad- ranging greeting 'Shalom' being trampled on. It is time to stand outside the Israel embassy in Dublin and chant 'Shalom' loudly. No political banners, no flags, just the chant – the people of Ireland protesting against the government of Israel. Declan Foley, Melbourne, Australia Kneecap are saying what the silent majority might be too afraid to verbalise I commend Ian O'Doherty for supporting Kneecap's right to free speech ('Kneecap are not free-speech martyrs – let them spread their stupid nonsense, because the alternative is far worse', Irish Independent, May 7). He refers to John Stuart Mill's book, On Liberty, with free speech being a 'fundamental building block of a liberal society'. But the English philosopher also said democratic ideals may result in the 'tyranny of the majority'. ADVERTISEMENT Learn more Put simply, tyranny of the majority refers to a situation in majority rule where the preferences and interests of the majority dominate the political landscape, potentially sidelining or repressing minority groups and using majority rule to take non-democratic actions. Nowhere is this more evident than in Israel, with the administration's agenda to stifle free speech by labelling any criticism of its actions as antisemitic. Last week your columnist referred to what he termed 'the small matter of the unpleasantness in the Middle East'. I thank God for artists like Kneecap because they are verbalising what a silent majority are afraid to say. Tom McElligott, Listowel, Co Kerry Efforts to influence how the papal conclave votes undermines its integrity Ellen Coyne's report that Declan Ganley helped finance a lavish conservative Catholic gathering in Rome, timed just before the conclave, raises serious questions about the politicisation of the papacy ('Declan Ganley, a ball in Rome and the push for an Irish-American pope', Irish Independent, May 7). While individuals may advocate for certain candidates, efforts to influence the church's direction through elite fundraising and private meetings with cardinals risk undermining transparency and spiritual integrity. The suggestion that the next pope should be someone who 'knows everything there is to know about Trump' will trouble many Catholics. Given Mr Trump's well-documented disregard for truth, humility and compassion, it is difficult to see how such a model aligns with the moral leadership expected of the church. Enda Cullen, Tullysaran Road, Armagh President's plan to reopen Alcatraz is so ironic as he could have been an inmate It's ironic that President Donald Trump is pushing to have Alcatraz reopened – had things worked out differently in the last presidential election, he might have ended up an inmate there. So, Donald, be careful what you wish for – no one knows what the future holds. Seamus McLoughlin, Keshcarrigan, Co Leitrim Global is all very well, but how about shifting some of the focus to domestic? Taoiseach Micheál Martin and Tánaiste Simon Harris acquitted themselves at the Global Ireland Summit. Perhaps now would be a good time for the Government to organise a summit without the word 'Global'. Such a summit might hear the similar pronouncements from our esteemed leaders on the state of our own country and the actions necessary to improve the lives of the people. An Tánaiste might use a slightly edited version of his Global Summit speech and declare that the Government 'cannot and will not stand idly by' and watch one in five of our young people intent on emigrating (or maybe change that to evacuating), cannot 'stand idly by' and watch the waiting list for scoliosis surgery grow by the month; cannot 'stand idly by' and watch homelessness continue to increase at an alarming rate; and cannot stand idly by and watch the continuing immigration crisis cause severe stress and unrest among communities. Peter Declan O'Halloran, Belturbet, Co Cavan Addiction cannot be easily overcome through simple application of willpower When Brendan Corrigan says 'One still chooses to open that bottle, snort that cocaine, gamble on that race, etc', he wrongly dismisses the addictive genes that predispose some of us to compulsive and irrational behaviour and betrays a privileged lack of understanding of addiction (Irish Independent, Letters, May 6). Why is it that, for some people, one more drink, snort, injection, smoke, purchase, bite or bet (as limited examples) is never enough? Why is it that no matter how grievously the addict may have injured themselves or others the last time they 'gave in', they always have the capacity for one more go? Why is it that the compulsion can be generational, recurring across the length and breadth of some family trees, and skipping generations in a way that removes the possibility of it merely being learned behaviour? It is because addiction is not a choice or an offer that addicts can simply refuse.
Broadcast Pro
07-05-2025
- Business
- Broadcast Pro
Rivada Space Networks teams up with Pulsar International
Through this partnership, Pulsar will use Rivadas Outernet to enhance its land mobile and maritime solutions. Rivada Space Networks has announced a strategic partnership with Pulsar International to deliver advanced secure connectivity solutions for maritime, agri-tech, enterprise and government clients. This collaboration supports Rivadas Outernet, a next-generation low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite network, and brings Rivadas global business commitments to over $16bn. Pulsars land mobile and maritime solutions will leverage Rivadas Outernet to provide resiliency for a range of data connectivity solutions and a new level of cybersecurity for customers that require secure infrastructure in places with limited or no connectivity. The Outernets fast, seamless and secure connectivity will ramp up network performance and enable true digital transformation and new business opportunities through multi-gigabit bi-directional performance, combined with worldwide reach. As the first unified global communications network, the Rivada Outernet is transformative. A next-generation low-Earth orbit satellite constellation designed to provide gigabit-speed connectivity to any point on the globe, without needing to touch the public internet or any third-party infrastructure. Combining inter-satellite laser links with advanced onboard processing and unique routing and switching capabilities, this optical mesh network, in which data stays in space from origin to destination, creates an ultra-secure network with pole-to-pole coverage, offering end-to-end latencies much lower than terrestrial fiber over similar long distances. For Enterprise and Government customers, the key attributes of the Outernet are suitable for a variety of applications, for example, to give banks and global companies secured networks with distributed offices, provide significantly more bandwidth for oil & gas exploration than is available today, enable seamless connectivity for shipping & fleet management, or provide 5G satellite backhaul connectivity network expansion for cellular operators. And with the continued expansion of the data-centre market to be AI-ready, data resiliency and security are paramount for future-ready infrastructure and integrated systems that adhere to the highest standards of safety and privacy. Commenting on the deal, Robert Sakker, President and CEO of Pulsar, said: 'By bringing Rivada's innovative satellite internet capabilities to the Pulsar Network, we're empowering businesses, agencies, and organisations with unprecedented connectivity options regardless of their location. This integration represents our commitment to delivering cutting-edge communication solutions that enable our partners to reach previously underserved markets with reliable, high-speed internet service.' Declan Ganley, CEO of Rivada Space Networks, added: We are delighted to be partnering with Pulsar to provide a secure backbone to develop communications infrastructure in remote locations. Rivadas Outernet is what data communications has been waiting for a game-changing constellation which redefines connectivity in terms of security, latency, capacity, efficiency, and coverage. As a completely new type of LEO constellation, the Outernet can provide any region in the world with a next-generation digital infrastructure for secure, resilient communications and network expansion.' Rivada will be at the International Telecommunications Week (ITW) in Washington DC from 5-7 May 2025.
