No party should shy away from a free vote on assisted dying...to do so would be gutless

'The right to live our lives through our own choices should not be denied as we approach death'

- Giles Sheldrick

BROADCASTING legend Jonathan Dimbleby is convinced the tide is turning on the assisted dying debate.

Few are as well tuned in to the strength of public feeling as the 79-year-old, part of a British television dynasty.

The plight of his younger brother Nicholas, who was diagnosed with motor neurone disease last year, has reinforced his view that seismic change is imminent.

The historian and royal biographer, who hosted Radio 4's Any Questions? for 32 years until 2019, said: "There is a shift and we are at a moment of real change.

"I hope all political parties, in the run-up to a general election, would allow MPs to vote freely on the principle of the right to die. No party should shy away from that.

"To do so would be gutless. It is deeply wrong that assisted dying is denied but my instinct is there will be a debate in the Commons, perhaps via a Private Members' Bill, but that in any case legislation will follow and we find ourselves joining a growing number of countries allowing people choice."

Jonathan, a close friend of the King and an authority on royalty and the constitution, comes from broadcasting blue blood.