Scrutiny has revealed the assisted dying bill’s terminal failings

It may once have seemed shrewd to allow assisted dying legislation to be introduced as a private member’s bill. That strategy allowed the prime minister to make his personal support well known, associating himself with what he regards as a progressive reform, while minimising government infighting. Letting the Labour backbencher Kim Leadbeater act as the lightning rod for the bill also means that Sir Keir Starmer has avoided any ­accountability for the quality of the legislation. His government has repeatedly emphasised its neutrality despite his implicit patronage, as evident when Sir Keir made a point of promising the campaigner Dame Esther Rantzen that Commons time would be set aside to consider a change in the law.

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