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ITV News
6 hours ago
- Politics
- ITV News
Dame Esther Rantzen 'astonished and relieved' to live to see MPs back assisted dying bill
Dame Esther Rantzen has told ITV News she is "astonished" to have lived to see MPs pass the assisted dying law. Speaking to ITV News' UK Editor Paul Brand, she said: "It won't come in my lifetime, I won't live long enough, but I am so relieved that it will help future generations to be able to look forward with hope and confidence to a good death." "I didn't think it was possible, it's happened, I'm astonished" The highly emotional debate saw MPs from all political persuasions argue for and against the bill. Dame Esther, who is terminally ill, has been a strong advocate for changing the law to allow dying adults to take their own lives in limited circumstances, without fear of their families being prosecuted for helping them. The 84-year-old has been campaigning for an assisted dying law for years and had previously told ITV News she was "determined" to live to see it passed. She revealed in December last year that she had joined Dignitas, to give her the choice of an assisted death in Switzerland. Speaking on Friday, she said she was full of "admiration" for MP Kim Leadbeater, who proposed the initial private members' bill and has been steering it through Parliament. "This is a very emotional topic, it was really important that it was guided through carefully and that all views are respected, and she maintained that." Dame Esther also said she was "astonished I have lived to see the moment." She added that Sir Keir Starmer had told her before he became prime minister that he would make sure she witnessed the debate. She said: "I didn't think it was possible, it's happened, I'm astonished and deeply grateful." Friday's vote does not mean the bill immediately becomes law as it will now transfer to the House of Lords for further scrutiny. The Upper House can make amendments to the bill and pass it back to MPs but it is expected this process will happen fairly quickly as the final date they can currently consider a Private Members' bill in this parliamentary session is July 11. There are several more stages of scrutiny in both chambers for the bill to go through before it heads to the King to receive royal assent and become law. Even with all of these processes it could still be another four years before the first person in the UK is able to legally make use of assisted dying services as the bill allows this time for the government to work out how it is implemented. Have you heard our podcast Talking Politics? Every week Tom, Robert and Anushka dig into the biggest issues dominating the political agenda…
ITV News
18 hours ago
- Health
- ITV News
MPs to cast final vote on assisted dying bill
MPs will cast their final vote on the assisted dying bill when it returns to the House of Commons on Friday. The crucial vote will see the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill either clear the House of Commons and move to the Lords, or fall completely. The proposed legislation would allow terminally ill adults in England and Wales, with fewer than six months to live, to apply for an assisted death, subject to approval by two doctors and a panel featuring a social worker, senior legal figure and psychiatrist. Kim Leadbeater, the architect of the bill, told ITV News' Talking Politics podcast she was 'positive and optimistic' that a majority of MPs would support 'the most robust assisted dying bill in the world', despite a growing number of MPs declaring they will vote against the legislation in recent months. Last week, MPs voted on a series of amendments to the bill, passing a clause that will stop health professionals from raising the subject of assisted dying with child patients, as well as another banning advertising the service. The final vote on Friday, following months of Parliamentary processes, will determine whether assisted dying is a step closer to becoming law, or whether it will be thrown out entirely. ITV News understands 162 MPs are so far planning to vote for it, 152 plan to vote against it, 22 remain undecided and 23 are due to abstain. This means we can share the voting intention of 359 of the 650 MPs. , while more than 20 remain undecided. What will happen on Friday? The bill is back for third reading, which is the first time MPs will vote on the overall piece of legislation since the yes vote in November. It is expected that some outstanding amendments might be voted on first thing on Friday before debate on the bill as a whole begins. MPs voted 330 to 275, majority 55, to approve the bill at second reading in November. The relatively narrow majority means every vote will count on Friday, to secure the bill's passage to the House of Lords for further debate and voting. What is in the bill? The proposed legislation would allow terminally ill adults in England and Wales, with fewer than six months to live, to apply for an assisted death. This would be subject to approval by two doctors and a panel featuring a social worker, a senior legal figure and a psychiatrist. The terminally ill person would take an approved substance, provided by a doctor, but administered only by the person themselves. When would assisted dying be available if the bill became law? The implementation period has been doubled to a maximum of four years from royal assent, rather than the initially suggested two years. If the bill were to pass later this year, that would mean it might not be until 2029, potentially coinciding with the end of this government's parliament, that assisted dying would be offered. Leadbeater, who put forward the extended timeframe, has insisted it is 'a backstop' rather than a target, as she pledged to 'hold the government's feet to the fire' on implementing legislation should the bill pass. The extended implementation period was one of a number of changes made since the bill was first introduced to the Commons back in October. What other changes have there been? The High Court safeguard has been dropped and replaced by expert panels – a change much-criticised by opponents who said it weakened the Bill, but something Leadbeater has argued strengthens it. At the end of a weeks-long committee process earlier this year to amend the Bill, Leadbeater said rather than removing judges from the process, 'we are adding the expertise and experience of psychiatrists and social workers to provide extra protections in the areas of assessing mental capacity and detecting coercion while retaining judicial oversight'. Changes were also made to ensure the establishment of independent advocates to support people with learning disabilities, autism or mental health conditions and to set up a disability advisory board to advise on legal implementation and impact on disabled people. Amendments added earlier this month during the report stage in the Commons will also see assisted dying adverts banned if the Bill becomes law, and a prohibition on medics being able to speak with under-18s about assisted dying.
ITV News
a day ago
- Entertainment
- ITV News
Antarctica: Following Shackleton's Endurance mission 100 years on
A century after Shackleton's ship Endurance sunk near Elephant Island, ITV News' Martin Stew makes the same journey on board the RRS Sir David Attenborough.
ITV News
a day ago
- Science
- ITV News
'115 humpback whales in one day' - ITV News' Polar team inspires the next generation of scientists
ITV News' Martin Stew and members of the British Antarctic Survey fielded questions at the Eureka Museum - whilst on board the RRS Sir David Attenborough.
ITV News
2 days ago
- Politics
- ITV News
Kim Leadbeater expects a majority of MPs to back ‘the most robust assisted dying bill in the world'
Kim Leadbeater told ITV News' Talking Politics podcast she was confident the bill would pass Kim Leadbeater has told ITV News' Talking Politics podcast she is 'positive and optimistic' that a majority of MPs will support 'the most robust assisted dying bill in the world' in this week's critical vote. The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill will get its crucial third reading and vote in the House of Commons on Friday, with MPs choosing to either pass it onto the House of Lords or kill it off. Despite a growing number of MPs declaring they will vote against the legislation in recent months, the Labour MP and architect of the bill said she expected 'some movement in both directions' in the next 48 hours but anticipated 'it will be relatively minor'. Speaking exclusively to the podcast, Leadbeater said: 'If that proves to be the case, it means we've still got a good majority and the bill will go forward." MPs have fiercely argued for and against a bill which will allow adults who are terminally ill, subject to safeguards and protections, to request and be provided with assistance to end their own life. ITV News understands - as of Wednesday evening - 152 MPs are planning to vote in favour, 141 plan to vote against it, 21 remain undecided, and 21 are due to abstain. The bill passed its first reading in the House of Commons with a majority of 55 votes (330 to 275) back in November, paving the way for months of scrutiny of the life-defining legislation. Leadbeater told podcast host Paul Brand: 'It's been a long journey, a tiring journey, but I'm feeling positive and optimistic, and hopefully we can get the bill over the line on Friday. 'Obviously lots of people are very clear about their positions, lots of people are very supportive of the bill, and there are people who are fundamentally against the bill, and I think in the middle there's potentially a small number of people who might change their mind either way, but if that proves to be the case, it means we've still got a good majority and the bill will go forward. 'So that's how I feel at the moment, but, you know, it's up to every MP to do what they feel is the right thing to do on Friday, and the debate will continue as it should.' Asked by Brand if she thought the vote would be tighter than November, Leadbeater replied: 'It's impossible to say, to be honest… I'm not keeping that close an eye on it, to be honest. 'But I think there'll be some movement in both directions. Certainly, a few colleagues have come out saying that they are going to support, having either abstained or voted against last time, and then other colleagues have done the same the other way. So, I think if there is any movement, it will be relatively minor.' She also defended the debate process, which saw significant changes to the original proposed legislation. 'Look, this is how we make laws. Are there things that I would change about the entire parliamentary process? Yes, there probably are,' she said. 'But if we start on pulling that thread at this stage, we've got a long way to go. So I think the bill has gone through a very robust process. 'If you think we started this back in November, so it's been a long period of time, the hours of scrutiny that it has had has been more than most government bills, lots of detailed exploration of the content, amendments looked at and tabled and taken and changes made, and that's quite right too. 'I've tried to engage with colleagues, whatever their views are, including on the bill committee, some very strong opponents of a change in the law, and I've tried to do that as collaboratively and as collegiately as I possibly can, and I think as a result of that, what Parliament will be presented with on Friday will be an even stronger piece of legislation and certainly the most robust assisted dying bill in the world." It has lost some support from the medical profession since it was first put to Parliament, with the Royal College of Psychiatrists saying in May that they could not back it.
