Lauren Edwards’ assisted suicide Bill has been defeated by 286 votes to 270 in a major victory for opponents of the Bill, settling the issue in England and Wales for a generation after a two-year national debate.
The assisted suicide Bill was opposed by the leaders of Labour, the Conservatives, Reform UK and the Liberal Democrats, while not a single Northern Irish MP voted for it.
After a similar major victory in Scotland in March of this year, and the most intense scrutiny that the question of assisted suicide has ever received in England and Wales, MPs in Westminster have rejected introducing assisted suicide.
Reflecting on the campaign that has run across the UK over the last two years against these major attempts to introduce assisted suicide, a prominent pollster has recognised the campaign against assisted suicide as one of the two “most successful 21st Century UK social issue campaigns.”
Remarkable reversal of fortunes
This is a remarkable reversal of fortunes for the assisted suicide lobby. Kim Leadbeater’s assisted suicide bill was introduced into the most socially and politically progressive House of Commons in British history. Before Second Reading, it was widely thought that it would move through Parliament with very strong majorities and easily become law.
At Second Reading, in November 2024, it was voted through with a majority of 55. This dropped to a majority of 23 at Third Reading in June 2025.
The Bill then moved on to the House of Lords, where it ran out of time before becoming law.
The Bill was then reintroduced in substantially the same form by Lauren Edwards MP in the House of Commons, where it has today been defeated at Second Reading.
Cross-party coalition rejects assisted suicide
MPs from across the political spectrum came together to oppose the Bill. The Mother and Father of the House of Commons, Labour’s Diane Abbott and the Conservative Sir Edward Leigh, penned a joint article calling for MPs unite behind fixing palliative and social care and leave this divisive debate behind.
The Bill was defeated at Second Reading, with Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch, Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey and Reform UK leader Nigel Farage all uniting in their opposition to the proposals. They were joined by senior Labour figures including Angela Rayner, Wes Streeting and Shabana Mahmood, alongside former Public Health Minister Ashley Dalton.
Jeremy Corbyn, Nigel Farage, Ayoub Khan and Rupert Lowe all recognised the Bill is not fit to become law.
Polling shows public support for rejection of assisted suicide Bill
The defeat of the assisted suicide Bill is consistent with new polling published on the day of the vote, which showed the public had major concerns with legalising assisted suicide and the negative impact that it would have on the most vulnerable people in England and Wales.
The poll conducted by British Polling Council Member, Whitestone Insight, was the largest poll of the public undertaken in the final two weeks before the vote, providing the most comprehensive up-to-date picture of where the public stands on assisted suicide ahead of today’s vote.
The poll found that the vast majority of the public backed the Prime Minister, Andy Burnham’s position on assisted suicide, with the results showing that 82% of the general public agree Parliament should first ensure no one would feel driven towards assisted suicide because they cannot get the care and support they need at the end of life. Only 8% disagreed.
The polling found widespread concern about vulnerable people being coerced or pressured into assisted suicide if it were legalised, with a strong majority agreeing that MPs should vote against the assisted suicide Bill if they have serious concerns about the impact it could have on the most vulnerable.
Major medical bodies and organisations came out against the Bill
Groups and experts who have expressed concerns about the dozens of flaws in the Bill or the need for further safeguards to be added include the Royal College of Psychiatrists, the Royal College of GPs, the Royal College of Physicians, the Royal College of Nursing, the Royal College of Pathologists, the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, the Equality and Human Rights Commission, the Children’s Commissioner, the former Chief Coroner, the British Association of Social Workers, the British Geriatrics Society, Hospice UK, Marie Curie, Age UK, the Association for Palliative Medicine, the Mental Health and Disability Law Committee, a coalition of over 350 disability organisations including Disability Rights UK, Not Dead Yet UK and Disabled People Against Cuts, Care England, Mind charity, the National Down Syndrome Policy Group, the Chair in Palliative Care at King’s College London, a Professor of Law and Medical Ethics at Oxford University, Standing Together Against Domestic Abuse, the House of Lords’ Delegated Powers and Regulatory Reform Committee, the Professor of Public Protection at the University of Gloucestershire, more than 1,000 doctors and overseas experts.
Alisdair Hungerford-Morgan, Chief Executive of Right To Life UK, said “This is a remarkable victory for the most vulnerable in our society. They deserve protection and care, not a pathway to suicide.”
“After a two-year-long national debate, the country has decided to reject assisted suicide, settling the issue for a generation.”
“Evidence from overseas shows that, had this legislation become law, countless vulnerable people nearing the end of life would have been pressured or coerced into ending their lives”.
“MPs’ decision follows that of the Scottish Parliament earlier this year, which also decisively rejected assisted suicide in a landmark vote.”
“In both Westminster and Holyrood, parliamentary scrutiny and expert testimony have shown that assisted suicide simply cannot be legalised in a safe way that protects vulnerable people. As is tragically evident elsewhere, many vulnerable people die under assisted suicide and euthanasia laws.”
“But as this debate ends, the real fight has only just begun.”
“It is vital that MPs now unite to give full attention to fixing the fundamental issues with health and end-of-life care provision, focusing on the goal of delivering universal access to high-quality palliative care, ensuring true dignity and care for all at the end of life.”
“The postcode lottery for outstanding palliative care has gone on for too long. We must now all come together to address the challenge of providing excellent palliative care to everyone who needs it, when they need it, and wherever they live. People nearing the end of their lives deserve the best support and care, and we can and must do better.”
