End of Life Bill: All you need to know about UK's proposed assisted dying legislation

Lawmakers in the United Kingdom will vote on the historic assisted dying bill at the end of this month. The proposed legislation, details of which were released on Tuesday (Nov 12), will make assisted dying legal in England and Wales.

It states the requirements for ending one's life, besides clearly setting out hardline safeguards, including lengthy prison sentences for coercion.

Labour MP Kim Leadbeater proposed the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill and said she believed she had put forward "the best possible legislation".

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She further warned MPs that the parliament may not get another chance to vote on the issue for another decade. Notably, several MPs are concerned over the potential for mission creep and coercion.

Leadbeater promised that the legislation would contain the “strictest protections and safeguards of any legislation anywhere in the world”. The MPs would cast their first vote on the proposals on Nov 29.

If the bill passes, more amendments might be considered before further voting in the House of Commons and Lords. It would take several more months for it to become effective.

The proposals include an expected lifespan of six months and a clear wish to die that is "free from coercion or pressure". Doctors won't be allowed to administer the life-ending medicine and the patient would be able to take it themselves.

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Anyone found breaking the law could face a punishment of up to 14 years in prison. All the recommendations made in the bill have come after years of debate in the parliament.

Details of End of Life Bill

• Patients must be over 18. They should have the mental capacity to make the decision to die and must be terminally ill.
• They should be expected to die within six months.
• They must express a "clear, settled and informed" wish to die "at every stage of the process".
• They must make two declarations of their desire to end their own life, both witnessed and signed.
• Two independent doctors must confirm that the person is eligible for assisted dying.
• A high court judge must approve the application and would hear from at least one of the doctors and may question the patient or anyone else involved.
• Medicine must be self-administered with doctors banned from assisting.
• Coercing a patient would be a criminal offence punishable by up to 14 years in prison.
• A seven-day wait time between getting clinical sign-off, and a 14-day wait from judicial approval - unless the person's life is expected to end sooner.

Those supporting the bill say that it clearly outlines the role of doctors and provides oversight from judges, something that was missing in the previous attempts to legalise assisted dying. The doctors will be required to be satisfied that the person is eligible to end their own life, and was not "coerced or pressured" into making the decision.

Critics of End of Life Bill

Meanwhile, those against the bill say that it still leaves gaps. They say that questions remain over the safeguards and the bill is missing provisions against “doctor shopping” if a patient is not satisfied with the answer they get from the first doctor.

They also ask whether a six-month prognosis includes people who are refusing to get treatment and whether doctors will have an assumption of mental capacity.

Responding to criticism, Leadbeater said that the Nov 29 vote is just the first step and the bill would be further scrutinised in the later stages.

She added that it had been a “thorough and robust process" and had been scrutinised by medical and legal experts, the palliative care and hospice sectors, and disability rights activists and faith leaders. People who had witnessed a loved one die in difficult circumstances were also part of the process.