MSPs have just voted by 69 to 57 to defeat Liam McArthur’s assisted suicide Bill. This means assisted suicide will be kept out of Scotland.
If this Bill had passed in the Scottish Parliament and gone on to become law, it would have ushered in an irrevocable change that would have put the vulnerable at risk and seen the ending of thousands of lives through assisted suicide in Scotland.
After two years of debate, and the most intense scrutiny that the question of assisted suicide has ever received in Scotland, Holyrood, which is widely regarded as one of the world’s most socially and politically progressive legislatures, has come to the conclusion that introducing assisted suicide is unsafe and dangerous.
The Bill was defeated at its decisive stage, with the leader of the SNP, Scottish First Minister John Swinney, Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar, and the leader of the Scottish Conservatives, Russell Findlay, all uniting in their opposition to the proposals.
They were joined by Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes and former First Ministers Nicola Sturgeon and Humza Yousaf.
THANK YOU
We want to emphasise that today’s victory would not have happened without you.
We want to thank you for your unwavering support during this campaign.
Thank you to those who have been in contact with their MSPs. Thank you for sharing actions with your friends and family. Thank you for meeting with your MSPs. This Bill could not have been defeated without your efforts.
Thank you to our supporters who have given so generously to enable us to have the resources in place to run the Support Not Suicide Scotland campaign, which has become the biggest campaign we have ever run in Scotland, and to work together with a large number of people to defeat this Bill.
Tonight’s incredible victory is the biggest pro-life victory in Scotland ever – and is also one of the biggest pro-life victories in UK history.
This is a moment of real significance in Scotland’s history, and you have been part of it.
To mark this historic moment, we have just released a moving and beautiful short film titled “A Better Path”, which was directed and produced by our Director of Creative and Digital, Sam Kemp.
You can view it now on X (or on Facebook here), and then please do share it so your friends and family know about this historic moment.
WHAT HAPPPENS NEXT?
As this debate ends, a new conversation must begin.
After the Holyrood elections in May, it is vital that MSPs come together to redouble their efforts to invest in universal access to high-quality palliative care.
This win in Scotland also gives considerable momentum to our campaign to defeat the Leadbeater assisted suicide Bill in Westminster.
The Scottish Parliament has today sent a decisive message to Westminster by rejecting assisted suicide.
The Westminster Bill is already on life support as Peers continue to address its multiple flaws and unanswered questions.
Rather than ploughing on with their dangerous Bill, the Bill sponsors in Westminster must now follow Scotland’s example and accept that assisted suicide is not the answer.
Finally, we just wanted to say, in this long battle for life, it may seem at times that we are outnumbered, but when it comes to people who are committed to defending life at all stages, you have shown that we can make a difference.
This is a historic victory for the most vulnerable in Scotland, who deserve our unwavering protection and the highest standard of care, not a pathway to assisted suicide.
