Peers are mounting a fresh offensive to halt the assisted dying bill on Friday, tabling almost 1,000 new amendments in an effort to run down the clock. More than half of the 942 amendments have been tabled by just seven members of the House of Lords, all vocal opponents of assisted dying.
A source close to the bill said it could effectively be filibustered if peers push many amendments to a vote. The bill, which began as a private member's bill from Labour MP Kim Leadbeater, passed the House of Commons in June and is now in the House of Lords.
On Thursday night, 65 peers, including two cabinet secretaries, former Labour leader Neil Kinnock and former Tory leader Ruth Davidson, warned it would be anti-democratic for the Lords to kill the bill after it had been passed by a reasonable majority in the Commons. Opponents argue the bill is not in the government's manifesto, so rules over Commons primacy do not apply.
The signatories of the letter said it was not the Lords' job to stop the bill. “Our role is to test and refine the bill where genuine improvements can be made, while respecting both the will of the Commons and the overwhelming support of the public,” they wrote. “It is not our role to frustrate the clear democratic mandate expressed by elected Members.”
In response, Labour's Luciana Berger, who opposes the bill, said: “The Lords select committee took evidence from a wide range of professional bodies and organisations including the EHRC, that strongly refuted any suggestion this bill is either safe or workable.” Those who tabled amendments include former doctor Ilora Finlay and former Paralympian Tanni Grey-Thompson, both of whom have tabled more than 100 amendments. Former health secretary Thérèse Coffey has tabled 60.
Backers of the bill said there was still a high expectation it would pass and that most peers would follow convention. One said they were “confident that there is a clear majority in the Lords – including opponents as well as supporters of the bill – who believe the upper house should scrutinise but not seek to frustrate the will of the elected chamber.”
