Assisted dying City campaigners urge peers to not ‘sabotage’ bill

ASSISTED dying campaigners are urging fellow Bristolians to lobby members of the House of Lords amid fears parliamentary process could prevent law change.

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Assisted dying campaigners thanked local MPs for backing the bill

Volunteers from Dignity In Dying In Bristol gathered outside Bristol Museum and Art Gallery on Sunday to thank MPs Karin Smyth, Damien Egan, Kerry McCarthy and Carla Denyer for backing Kim Leadbeater’s assisted dying bill, marking the anniversary of the first Commons vote in which MPs passed the bill last year. Darren Jones was the only city MP who voted against.

Lead campaigner Pauline Carroll said they were “proud to have MPs who stand for choice, compassion and safety for dying people and their loved ones.”

But she said despite this momentum, a small group of peers were currently attempting to delay and block the bill. Volunteers described the attempts as “undemocratic,” saying 75% of the public support assisted dying and that efforts to stall the bill “go against the will of both the electorate and the elected House of Commons”

Last week the assisted dying bill was allocated further sessions for debate in Parliament, after a record number of amendments prompted concerns it would run out of time to be passed into law.