This week, the Labour MP Kim Leadbeater finally put forward the much-awaited bill on assisted dying, which will likely be discussed in the coming weeks. Supporters of the bill have been campaigning on the issue for years, with legislation on the topic most recently rejected by the House of Commons in 2015. This bill, however, is little better. Above all, in its vagueness it fails to outline what drugs can legally be administered to help someone end their life.
The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, as it is officially known, simply states that ‘the Secretary of State must, by regulations, specify one or more drugs or other substances for the purposes of the Act’. But this is problematic: different countries where assisted dying is already legal use very different drugs regimens – and they are often far from successful.
The time to death after ingesting these lethal drugs seems highly unpredictable
The practicalities involved in legalising assisted dying – such as what cocktail of drugs can legally be used – are important to consider, not least because most people are unlikely to know what such processes look like.
Britain’s best politics newsletters
You get two free articles each week when you sign up to The Spectator’s emails.
Already a subscriber? Log in
Comments
Join the debate, free for a month
Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first month free.
UNLOCK ACCESS Try a month freeAlready a subscriber? Log in