The introduction of assisted dying in England and Wales is likely to be pushed back by a further two years in a delay that supportive MPs fear could mean the change of law is never realised.
The deferral was proposed by Kim Leadbeater, the Labour MP piloting the assisted dying bill through parliament. It means the initial timeline of two years for implementing the law will now stretch to four.
The earliest an assisted dying service is now expected to beoperational is 2029, the year by which the next general election must take place, raising fears among backers of the bill that ministers would be reluctant to push through such a controversial change before voters go to the polls.
A spokesperson for Leadbeater said she “hopes and believes the service can be delivered more quickly” but that the changes made to the bill since the autumn meant it would “inevitably take longer to implement”.
The delay marks the latest major change to the assisted dying proposals, which have proven deeply contentious in the Commons and beyond.
The new four-year timeline will only become official once it is approved by the Commons committee scrutinising the bill, which was due to discuss the proposed change on Tuesday night.
Tom Gordon, a Liberal Democrat MP who sits on the committee, said that “delaying implementation risks pushing it beyond the next election, where it could be abandoned altogether”. “We have thoroughly scrutinised and strengthened this bill, ensuring it is safe and robust. Every extra year means more unnecessary suffering for those who cannot afford to wait,” Gordon said.
Another MP who supports assisted dying said: “I fear it risks politicising it massively – if it has been through parliament and got support of the public then potentially making it an election issue is not desirable at all. It might have been easier just to not have a deadline at all.” A third supportive MP said they “can’t see Whitehall seeing this as anything other than a chance to delay it indefinitely”.
If approved, the bill would allow terminally ill adults in England and Wales who are expected to die within six months to seek help to end their own life. MPs voted in support of the proposal in November.
The bill’s supporters had originally intended for it to become law this year and its implementation to begin within two years, in 2027, meaning an assisted dying service would be established well before the next election.
Leadbeater’s spokesperson said: “Kim has always been clear that it’s more important to get the assisted dying legislation right than to do it quickly.
“The bill now contains even stronger safeguards than when it was first tabled, with a new judge-led voluntary assisted dying commission and multi-disciplinary panels to examine every application. These will inevitably take longer to implement.
“But the four-year limit is not a target, it’s a backstop. Kim hopes and believes the service can be delivered more quickly if it becomes law later this year.”
Wes Streeting paid tribute to Leadbetter’s “leadership through this process” praising her for constructively engaging with ministers, and her “willingness to compromise through the process”.
“I can’t fault the way in which she has tried to engage with people, including critics, on this issue, and that’s been reflected in the decision of the bill committee today,” the health secretary said in an interview with the Guardian on Tuesday night.
Jeevun Sandher, a Labour MP supportive of the bill, said: “All of these changes strengthen the bill. Extending the timeline to make absolutely sure we have enough time seems sensible to me. I hope and believe this choice will be available well before the four-year mark.”
Pro-assisted dying campaigners expressed disappointment in the change. Andrew Copson, chief executive of Humanists UK, said: “Many other countries already have safe assisted dying laws and none of them has taken more than 19 months to implement them, apart from one that was subject to a court challenge. So it really shouldn’t have to take four years.”
Opponents said the delayed timeline was symptomatic of wider problems with the bill. Jess Asato, a Labour MP, said: “Putting an arbitrary timeline on such a complex issue was never a sensible way to make life or death legislation. This last-minute switch demonstrates again just how chaotic this whole process has been with substantial last-minute changes to core sections of the bill.”
In a significant change to the original proposals, last month Leadbeater removed the need for every assisted dying case to be scrutinised by a high court judge after concerns this could overwhelm the court system. Instead, cases will be reviewed by panels including a senior lawyer, a psychiatrist and a social worker.
Elsewhere on Tuesday, the Isle of Man’s parliament approved a bill to legalise assisted dying, making it the first place in the British Isles to introduce the change.
The legislation, which will now be put forward for royal assent, will give terminally ill people “autonomy and choice” at the end of their lives, said Dr Alex Allinson, a GP and politician who introduced the private member’s bill in 2022.
The bill only covers adults resident on the island for five years and who have a terminal illness with a life expectancy of no more than 12 months. They must also have a settled intention to end their life. Doctors will be free to choose whether they want to opt in to providing the service.
