Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill

Earl Howe Excerpts

Friday 13th March 2026 Lords Chamber

As I have said, this also raises the issue of what we expect of medical professionals, in terms of people who want to take their own lives without assistance, and what they should do in those circumstances. I still do not understand how we are reconciling those two things. I do not understand how a medical professional can have a duty to prevent someone taking their own life in other circumstances but be expected to facilitate such a thing in these circumstances. I still do not understand how we are reconciling that in a moral, professional or legal context, so I would be grateful if the noble and learned Lord could set out how he will reconcile these things when he responds to this excellent and very helpful group of amendments.

[Earl Howe (Con)]

My Lords, the sheer number of amendments from noble Lords on all sides of the Committee that are seeking to prevent medical practitioners initiating a conversation about assisted dying with a patient demonstrates how strongly noble Lords feel about this issue. As a minimum, it is clear that many noble Lords do not feel that the Bill’s current drafting is sufficient. Although we have heard some counter-arguments during the debate, it is now incumbent on the noble and learned Lord, Lord Falconer, to set out in some detail his reasons for allowing registered medical practitioners to initiate these discussions.

Following on from that, there was one particularly moving contribution to this debate: the speech from my noble friend Lady Monckton. The case she made from her own family perspective in support of my noble friend Lord Shinkwin’s Amendment 162—to prohibit the topic of assisted dying being raised with someone with Down syndrome or a learning disability—was one I found especially powerful. I hope that the noble and learned Lord, Lord Falconer, will acknowledge that this is a particularly sensitive aspect of the issue which needs to be addressed.

There are two additional issues I should like to pick up. I was particularly interested in the amendment tabled by the noble Baroness, Lady Grey-Thompson, which requires a minimum 48-hour delay between diagnosis and any conversation about assisted dying. Given the shock that a patient will feel when receiving a diagnosis that could make them eligible under the Bill, it seems right and appropriate that they be given the space and time to process the news before facing the question of potentially ending their own life. Is the noble and learned Lord, Lord Falconer, willing to consider how that degree of sensitivity might be incorporated into the Bill—or, failing that, into guidance—to ensure that patients who receive some of the worst news they will ever hear do not immediately feel the need to address a choice as momentous and emotive as whether they wish to end their own life?

Finally, the amendments in respect of persons aged under 18 are worthy of the noble and learned Lord’s careful consideration. The Bill is designed to create a legal right for those aged over 18, not for children, so surely it follows that its provisions should not be raised with children. I therefore hope the noble and learned Lord will carefully consider the protections for children that the Bill could usefully incorporate.

[Baroness Blake of Leeds (Lab)]

My Lords, I thank all noble Lords who have contributed to this very important debate. As usual, I will limit my comments to amendments on which the Government have major legal, technical or operational workability concerns.

To begin, key concepts in Amendment 149, moved by the noble Baroness, Lady Grey-Thompson, are unclear. It will therefore be difficult to assess whether the duties have been discharged. For example, it is not clear who must co-ordinate and undertake the suggested multiagency assessment of support needs and who is responsible for ensuring that those needs are fully funded, so it may be impossible to demonstrate that these criteria have been met.

Amendment 152, tabled by the noble Lord, Lord Moylan, seeks to prohibit registered medical practitioners or any other health professionals from raising the subject of provision of assistance under the Bill. If passed, this would be inconsistent with the discretion currently afforded to the registered medical practitioner in Clause 5(2), which makes it clear that a registered medical practitioner may exercise

“their professional judgement to decide if, and when, it is appropriate to discuss the matter”.

This amendment would therefore create conflicting duties and may lead to confusion about whether a registered medical practitioner can raise the issue of assisted dying.