THE Commons is considering potentially one of the biggest social changes in Britain since the legalisation of abortion. But one party is sitting out the debate on assisted dying – the SNP.
Deputy Westminster leader Pete Wishart said that he would not be voting on Labour backbencher Kim Leadbeater’s Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill.
In a tweet, the longstanding SNP MP said: “I will not be voting in tomorrow's vote on assisted dying.
“There are no provisions in this bill that impact on Scotland and Scotland has its own bill.
"My view is if it doesn't affect the people I represent it should not concern me, particularly on a matter of personal conscience.”
Will the assisted dying bill affect Scotland?
In short, no, the assisted dying bill will not directly affect Scotland. However, if it passes its first vote, assisted dying campaigners will find renewed strength in their campaign to change the law north of the Border.
Leadbeater’s bill would only provide for assisted suicide in England and Wales, so in a strict sense Wishart’s first point is correct.
However, legalising assisted dying south of the Border could mean that Scots who wished to end their lives could do it in the UK, rather than having to go to Switzerland, for instance.
And Wishart’s tweet potentially leaves out another crucial reason the SNP could be choosing to sit this debate out: the party have been riven by divisive social issues in recent years – most prominently the debate over trans rights.
With the prominent role of faith in the debate around assisted suicide, and the questions that Kate Forbes (above) faced during her failed leadership bid over the relationship between her politics and her religion, it would be unsurprising if the SNP felt they’d rather not open up new divisions in the party.
What is the situation in Scotland?
But it has a major flaw, according to Health Secretary Neil Gray.
The SNP minister reckons that McArthur’s bill would not be within the powers of the Scottish Parliament.
He said that Holyrood does not have the powers to change key parts of the law relating to assisted suicide, including controls over medicines which are reserved to Westminster.
If Gray is correct, that would mean that the Scottish Government would need to work with the UK Government to change the law north of the Border.
McArthur (above) thinks that is doable and, given that the Prime Minister is personally in favour of assisted dying, he’s probably correct.
But when Gray set out his argument about the LibDem MSP’s bill being outwith Holyrood’s powers, the Health Secretary did not sound overly encouraging.
He noted that to achieve “a truly comprehensive assisted dying scheme” in Scotland, it would require the co-operation of Westminster, likely in the form of a Section 30 order.
This could take almost a year and a half, Gray noted, and would have to be done before a final Holyrood vote on the bill.
