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There has been a significant amount of news coverage (and controversy) arising from the "Assisted Suicide" Bill this week, with the Bill currently at the Committee Stage in the House of Commons. The proposed law – which is wholly opposed by the Catholic Church – was introduced as a Private Members’ Bill by Labour MP Kim Leadbeater late last year, with 330 MPs voting in favour of the Bill and 275 MPs voting against it.

The proposed legislation was introduced to the House of Commons with a number of alleged "safeguards", including the assurance that a High Court judge would carefully scrutinise each application to assess eligibility, and ensure individuals had not been coerced. However, in a significant reversal, Kim Leadbeater has since announced that she now supports replacing the role and oversight of a High Court judge with a "panel of experts", potentially comprising a senior "legal expert", a psychiatrist and a social worker.

Speaking to the BBC on Monday, Liberal Democrat MP Sarah Olney highlighted that the legislation initially passed by the House of Commons in November "specifically gave provision for a High Court judge" to sign off cases, stating that "many MPs voted for it on that basis".

Reflecting on the passage of the legislation through Parliament, Cardinal Nichols, President of the Bishops’ Conference and Archbishop of Westminster, called the way in which the assisted suicide bill is being handled “deeply irresponsible” and a “shambles”. Speaking to Christian Fellowship at News UK, he expressed serious concern that MPs had spent less than a day debating assisted suicide, compared to more than 700 hours debating the ban on fox hunting in 2004.

Commenting on the broader impact of the Bill, he said: “I think what’s happening, if it comes to pass, would be the biggest change that this country has seen for many, many decades, probably more. On the back of what – five, six, seven hours’ debate?" The Cardinal hopes that the bill might still be defeated, reflecting the significant concern felt by people and groups across the UK that a change in the law to allow assisted suicide, will pave the way for a culture and expectation where “the right to die can become a duty to die”.

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‍Sources: The BBC & CBCEW