Latest news with #PrivateMembers'Bill
ITV News
8 hours ago
- Health
- ITV News
How did the MPs from the Border region vote in the Assisted Dying Bill?
MPs have voted in favour of the assisted dying bill which will legalise the right for terminally ill people in England and Wales to end their own life with medical assistance. In a historic vote, MPs voted 314 to 291 in favour of the bill, backing the right for adults with less than six months to live to choose to end their own lives. The bill was brought forward by Labour backbencher Kim Leadbeater and MPs began voting after 2pm on Friday. How did MPs in the Border region vote? Josh MacAlister MP for Whitehaven and Workington was the only MP from our region who voted in favour of the bill. Fellow Labour MP Julie Minns for Carlisle did not vote on the bill. The MPs opposed to the bill in our region were Labour's Markus Campbell Savours, the Lib Dem's Tim Farron and John Cooper, John Lamont and David Mundell from the Conservatives. The full voting list can be found here. 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 chamber 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 11 July.
ITV News
9 hours ago
- Health
- ITV News
MPs vote to legalise assisted dying in landmark moment - what happens next?
MPs have voted to legalise assisted dying in a landmark decision which could pave the way for what has been described as the biggest social shift in Britain for decades. Despite impassioned arguments from the bill's opponents - who say vulnerable people could be coerced into ending their lives early, and that the state should have no role in it - MPs voted by a majority of ** to press ahead with the policy. However, that does not guarantee that terminally ill people will be able to have an assisted death in England and Wales anytime soon. In fact, there are still several hurdles for the bill to pass before it can become law. And, even if it achieves that, years could pass before any law is implemented and the practice of assisted dying begins. So what happens now that MPs have approved the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill? The Lords After a bill has successfully passed through the House of Commons, it must then go through the same stages of scrutiny in the unelected House of Lords. That means there's still a first reading, second reading, the committee stage, the report stage and the final third reading of the bill, before it can become law. If the Lords decide they aren't happy with an aspect of the bill, they send it back to the Commons with amendments, which MPs then debate and consider whether to accept. This can happen several times, in a process known as parliamentary ping-pong, and it can delay a bill's passage for months. But this time there's a time limit: the last scheduled date that the Commons can currently consider a Private Members' Bill in this parliamentary session is Friday 11 July. So in theory, there's less than a month for the Lords to decide, however its likely the government would choose to extend the session so the legislation passes. Despite these various hurdles, it is expected that the Lords will move quickly to approve the bill. The King After the Lords approve a bill, the next stage before it becomes law is Royal Assent. This is where it lands on the King's desk for a final bit of ceremonial scrutiny. As the UK's head of state, the King has the final say on all bills. Howver, in reality and according to the constitution, he would always approve any bill which has successfully passed through Parliament. Once it has the King's royal seal of approval, the policy goes from being a called a bill to an act. It's new name will be the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Act. And then it's down to the government to implement it. Implementation If the process goes as quickly as expected, the bill would finally become law later this year - ten years after the previous unsuccessful attempt to introduce it. But it could be 2029 by the time the law is implemented. That's because a clause in the bill gives the government up to four years to work out exactly how the practice of assisted dying will work. In that time, the health secretary will make important decisions about the process, including the required qualifications for doctors, the forms of identification patients would have to provide, the records that would have to be kept by doctors and the codes of practice that would govern the assisted dying process. A decision would also have to be made on which lethal substance could be used to bring about death. So the next general election could be around the corner by the time terminally ill people, with less than six months to live, can have an assisted death in England and Wales. But the aim, as set out by Ms Leadbeater, is for the government to implement the law a lot sooner. What will it mean for the NHS? ITV News Health Correspondent Rebecca Barry said: The bill doesn't spell out how an assisted dying service should be delivered, but there are three potential models: - It could be integrated into the current healthcare system, with doctors in existing hospitals and care settings providing assisted dying services - like they do in the Netherlands. - Or it could be more like Switzerland, where assisted dying is a distinct service outside of the health system - run by non-profit organisations. - Finally, it might be a hybrid model, like abortion services in the UK, where the NHS has overall responsibility - but it is delivered by a separate provider. The bill states that assisted dying should be provided free of charge, but, if it is publicly funded, it will sit alongside services which are not - like hospices, which get the majority of their funding from charity. When the NHS is already facing enormous pressures, some will question how it will manage to deliver such complex additional responsibilities. What about the rest of the UK? The assisted dying bill only applies to England and Wales, not the rest of the UK, because health is devolved in Scotland and Northern Ireland. Scotland is currently considering its own assisted dying bill, which Members of the Scottish Parliament have given approval to in principle. It's at a much earlier stage than Westminster's bill but proponents expect it to pass. But campaigners say Northern Ireland is being left behind, because lawmakers there do not appear to be following the rest of the UK. The country's Department for Health has said there are "no plans to introduce legislation on assisted dying". Other parts of the British Isles, including Jersey and the Isle of Man have already legalised assisted dying.
ITV News
9 hours ago
- Health
- ITV News
Assisted dying bill passes in parliament after MPs vote in favour
MPs have voted in favour of the assisted dying bill which will legalise the right for terminally ill people in England and Wales to end their own life with medical assistance. In a historic vote, MPs voted 314 to 219 in favour of the bill, backing the right for adults with less than six months to live to choose to end their own lives. MPs began voting on the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, brought forward by Labour backbencher Kim Leadbeater, just after 2pm on Friday as opposition and pro-change campaigners gathered outside Parliament. It came after an often highly emotional debate in the Commons with MPs from across the political divide making impassioned arguments for and against. 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 chamber 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. Under Leadbeater's bill, for a person to be eligible, they must be over the age of 18 and have the mental capacity to make the choice. When MPs lasted voted on this bill it stipulated those seeking to end their life must have the decision signed off by at least two doctors and a High Court judge. MPs have since dropped this final requirement in favour of an "expert panel" which includes a lawyer, a psychiatrist and a social worker. This move has divided some with some viewing it as an improvement and others seeing it as less substantial. Assisted dying is currently banned in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, with a maximum prison sentence of 14 years. The last time MPs voted on the issue in 2015, the bill was defeated by 330 votes to 118, but the composition of the Commons has significantly changed since then following this year's general election with more Labour MPs sitting. A total of 605 out of 650 MPs voted on this bill last time. It was a free vote, meaning the government's position on this was officially neutral. The voting came slightly later in the day as MPs finished voting on amendments they ran out of time for in the previous debate. MPs voted to reject an amendment making people ineligible for assisted dying if their wish to end their life was motivated by not wanting to be a burden, a mental disorder, a disability, financial considerations, a lack of access to care, or suicidal ideation. An amendment to close a loophole allowing someone to seek assisted dying as a result of voluntarily stopping eating enjoyed wide support and was passed without a vote. MPs rejected a vote removing the "presumption of capacity," which would have required people seeking to end their life to first prove they had the mental capacity to do so. Parliament voted against a technical amendment seeking to prevent the government from being able to alter the founding purposes of the NHS and in favour of amendments clarifying where parts of this bill will take effect as well as a commitment for the government to publish a review of palliative care in one year. This matter is a devolved issue for the UK and Friday's main vote will only affect England and Wales.
Fashion Network
3 days ago
- Politics
- Fashion Network
MP to introduce private members' bill to ban fur in UK
A complete ban on fur imported and sold in the UK is on the agenda again. Labour MP for Newport West and Islwyn, Ruth Jones, has introduced a Private Members' Bill to parliament that would prohibit the import and sale of new fur products, reports the BBC. While fur farming has been banned in Wales and England since 2000, many types of fur are still legally imported and sold, she noted. Jones said: 'Twenty years ago, a Labour government banned fur farming because it was cruel and inhumane. If we think it's cruel and inhumane to farm it, why are we importing it? It doesn't make sense.' The MP added: 'Caged animals are kept in dreadful, inhumane conditions just to provide fur for a declining industry. Faux fur could do the job just as well.' But the proposal isn't without opposition, as the British Fur Trade Association (BFTA) has accused Jones of being the 'wardrobe police', adding the ban would be 'unenforceable and unworkable' and may breach trade agreements with the EU and the US. In a statement, the BFTA also warned that a ban could cost thousands of skilled British jobs: 'Standards in the fur sector are among the highest of any form of animal husbandry with rigorous and comprehensive animal welfare standards, third-party inspection and strict international and national laws,' it added. The bill follows Sonul Badiani-Hamment, UK director for animal welfare organisation Four Paws, recently presenting a petition with one-and-a-half million signatures in support of a fur-free Britain, alongside other campaigners. 'There isn't any justification for the cruelty experienced by these animals on fur farms,' she said. 'Country after country are leaving the market. Sweden recently committed to decommissioning the fur trade entirely.' But Mel Kaplan, who works at Vintage Fur Garden in London, also told the BBC that demand for vintage fur 'was growing... We have queues going out the door in the winter. Over the past three years, there's been a resurgence in the want for vintage fur. 'I think younger people especially are looking more to vintage clothing in general. I think fast fashion has taken a decline in popularity.' The second reading of the bill is expected to take place in parliament on 4 July.
Fashion Network
3 days ago
- Politics
- Fashion Network
MP to introduce private members' bill to ban fur in UK
A complete ban on fur imported and sold in the UK is on the agenda again. Labour MP for Newport West and Islwyn, Ruth Jones, has introduced a Private Members' Bill to parliament that would prohibit the import and sale of new fur products, reports the BBC. While fur farming has been banned in Wales and England since 2000, many types of fur are still legally imported and sold, she noted. Jones said: 'Twenty years ago, a Labour government banned fur farming because it was cruel and inhumane. If we think it's cruel and inhumane to farm it, why are we importing it? It doesn't make sense.' The MP added: 'Caged animals are kept in dreadful, inhumane conditions just to provide fur for a declining industry. Faux fur could do the job just as well.' But the proposal isn't without opposition, as the British Fur Trade Association (BFTA) has accused Jones of being the 'wardrobe police', adding the ban would be 'unenforceable and unworkable' and may breach trade agreements with the EU and the US. In a statement, the BFTA also warned that a ban could cost thousands of skilled British jobs: 'Standards in the fur sector are among the highest of any form of animal husbandry with rigorous and comprehensive animal welfare standards, third-party inspection and strict international and national laws,' it added. The bill follows Sonul Badiani-Hamment, UK director for animal welfare organisation Four Paws, recently presenting a petition with one-and-a-half million signatures in support of a fur-free Britain, alongside other campaigners. 'There isn't any justification for the cruelty experienced by these animals on fur farms,' she said. 'Country after country are leaving the market. Sweden recently committed to decommissioning the fur trade entirely.' But Mel Kaplan, who works at Vintage Fur Garden in London, also told the BBC that demand for vintage fur 'was growing... We have queues going out the door in the winter. Over the past three years, there's been a resurgence in the want for vintage fur. 'I think younger people especially are looking more to vintage clothing in general. I think fast fashion has taken a decline in popularity.' The second reading of the bill is expected to take place in parliament on 4 July. Meanwhile, the UK government said it was building a 'clear evidence base to inform future action', with an updated animal welfare strategy due to be published later this year.
