Former minister Ashley Dalton urges MPs to reject assisted dying legislation
A former minister with stage 4 incurable breast cancer has made an impassioned plea against assisted dying, telling MPs that it would be “nothing short of irresponsible” to pass the legislation, reports BritPanorama.
The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill has returned to Parliament after running out of time earlier this year.
Ashley Dalton, the Labour MP for West Lancashire, who resigned from her post as a health minister while continuing her treatment, urged colleagues to vote against the bill, recounting her experience of receiving a terminal diagnosis.
“The last time this House considered this bill at second reading, I was keeping a secret,” Ms Dalton said. “Whilst honourable and right honourable members were debating the issue, I was grappling with my own terminal diagnosis.
“I was told I have stage four incurable metastatic breast cancer. I was overwhelmed with grief, fear, and anxiety. I was scared of what was to come, and how it would impact my family and my loved ones.”
She highlighted the psychological turmoil faced by patients, noting, “When you hear those words, depression, anxiety, grief, fear, shame, and guilt come in bounds. Suicide risk is highest immediately after diagnosis, and it usually falls quickly within three to six months.”
Dalton argued that the bill “makes no provision to support this difficult transition or to create safeguards around it”, warning that individuals experiencing suicidal thoughts may request assisted death without proper assessment of their psychological state.
“I would be lying if I said that when thinking about all that was to come, I didn’t consider that it might just be fairer and easier on everyone if I just got the dying over with as soon as possible,” she admitted.
She added that treatable depression would not exclude someone from an assisted death under the bill, which allows adults in England and Wales with fewer than six months to live to apply for assisted dying, pending approval from two doctors and an expert panel.
However, Dalton expressed skepticism regarding the predictability of terminal diagnoses. “I don’t know how long I will live,” she said. “The last scan may show the disease is stable, but the next scan might show that it is growing again.”
She claimed that individuals facing terminal diagnoses have been “scaremongered” into believing their deaths will be horrific, stating that effective palliative care can lead to a gentle death. “It’s nothing short of irresponsible to scaremonger people like me into believing our deaths will be horrific,” she said, emphasizing the need for good palliative care.
Closing her argument, Ms Dalton implored the Commons, “My days may be numbered, but that doesn’t mean that I want this chamber to rush through bad law just so I might have a chance to see it or use it. It’s of huge importance.”
Lauren Edwards, the MP who re-introduced the Bill, called on her colleagues to send the near-identical Bill back to the Lords for further scrutiny. She emphasized the need for democratic integrity, suggesting that the unelected Lords should not determine laws affecting citizens.
Approximately 70 MPs had expressed a desire to speak on the Bill before the debate, with a vote anticipated by 2:30 PM. Despite passing two votes in the Commons in previous years, the majority in favor of the Bill dwindled from 55 to 23 during the last vote.
As the debate continues, the implications of this legislation remain significant, reflecting broader societal values regarding end-of-life choices.
