News

Assisted dying bill: Special series #13 - Parliament Matters podcast, Episode 96

14 Jun 2025

In this episode, we return to the Commons Chamber for day two of the Report Stage of the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill – the Private Member’s Bill proposing to legalise assisted dying in England and Wales – and another set of amendments, new clauses and votes. For the first time the supporters of the Bill lost a vote, on a new clause banning medical practitioners from raising the option of an assisted death with under-18s.

Please help us by completing our Listener Survey. It will only take a few minutes.

LISTEN
Subscribe

So, what does this mean for the Bill’s chances? With day three of Report Stage now scheduled for Friday, 20 June, Parliament Matters’ resident procedural expert Paul Evans joins Ruth and Mark to unpack what’s happened so far — and what might be coming next. Is parliamentary support beginning to waver?

They also look ahead to the Third Reading debate, and the quirky (and very real) parliamentary rituals that would follow if the Bill passes – involving a green ferret and some Norman French.

Plus, MPs John McDonnell and Jeremy Corbyn complain after facing investigation for joining a pro-Palestinian demonstration. They claim the police said that MPs should be held to a higher legal standard than ordinary citizens – raising troubling constitutional questions. Could this be a case of using the law to intimidate parliamentarians? If so, what can and should be done?

Listen on our YouTube channel (captioned)

Subscribe to our YouTube channel

Our guest

Paul Evans CBE. ©

Paul Evans CBE

Paul worked as a Clerk in the House of Commons for nearly forty years, retiring in 2019 as Clerk of Committees responsible for the House’s select committees. He was made a CBE in 2019 for services to Parliament. During his career in the House of Commons he held a number of posts including Clerk of the Journals and Principal Clerk of the Table Office. He is a member of the Hansard Society and is a former Chair of the Study of Parliament Group . He has published a number of works on Parliament including the Dods Handbook of House of Commons Procedure.

Resources

Hansard Society

Parliament

Transcript

Please note, this transcript is automatically generated. There may consequently be minor errors and the text is not formatted according to our style guide. If you wish to reference or cite the transcript copy below, please first check against the audio version above.

Intro: [00:00:00] You are listening to Parliament Matters, a Hansard Society production supported by the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust. Learn more at hansardsociety.org.uk/pm.

Ruth Fox: Welcome to Parliament Matters, the podcast about the institution at the heart of our democracy, Parliament itself. I'm Ruth Fox.

Mark D'Arcy: And I'm Mark D'Arcy. And welcome to the latest in our series of special podcast, tracing events around the Terminally Ill Adults End Of Life Bill, the bill that would allow assisted dying in England and Wales.

Ruth Fox: And Mark where we're at, we've seen the debate on the bill at report stage finished today. It has come to a close in terms of the discussion of the new clauses and the amendments, but the votes haven't finished. They didn't get through them all today, so MPs will have to come back next Friday, [00:01:00] 20th of June, to continue the votes that are outstanding.

We don't exactly know how many there will be. We know that there's one that the Speaker has selected today that they didn't get to, one from an opponent to the bill Rebecca Paul. But the speaker has indicated that he will be selecting further amendments for a decision as well. So there'll be a chunk of new votes on Friday next week.

But of the votes that did take place today, an amendment from Meg Hillier succeeded. Not one that Kim Leadbeater was supporting.

Mark D'Arcy: This is so far the first defeat, if you like, for Kim Leadbeater. Her bill has so far managed to ward off all the sort of hostile amendments until the moment that Meg Hillier's new clause two was voted on, and this was the clause that would've prevented doctors and other medical personnel from raising the subject of a possibility of assisted dying with a terminally ill person, under the age of 18. So they wouldn't be able to suggest it, the person concerned would have to actually raise it [00:02:00] themselves as a result of this amendment. So this is a defeat. It was reasonably emphatic in the end, wasn't it?

Subscribe to Parliament Matters

Use the links below to subscribe to the Hansard Society's Parliament Matters podcast on your preferred app, or search for 'Parliament Matters' on whichever podcasting service you use. If you are unable to find our podcast, please email us here.

Apple Podcast logo

Apple

©

YouTube Podcasts

Spotify logo

Spotify

More ways to subscribe
Parliament Matters homepage

Latest / Highlights

News / Parliament Matters Bulletin: What’s coming up in Parliament this week? 7-11 July 2025

The Government’s welfare bill will return to the Commons, where several provisions will be removed or amended. The Hereditary Peers Bill will continue its Report Stage in the Lords. MPs will debate the Pension Schemes Bill for the first time. The Home Secretary will face oral questions from MPs and appear at a select committee. The Football Governance Bill will complete its parliamentary scrutiny. The Foreign Secretary and the Deputy Prime Minister will be questioned by select committees. Backbenchers will lead debates on children’s health and the attainment of boys in education.

06 Jul 2025
Read more

News / Labour's welfare meltdown - Parliament Matters podcast, Episode 99

It’s been a bruising week for the Government, as a Labour backbench revolt forced ministers to gut their own welfare reforms live in the House of Commons. We explore why Sir Keir Starmer appears to have such a poor grip on parliamentary management. Plus, House of Lords reform expert Professor Meg Russell explains why the hereditary peers bill may be a once-in-a-generation chance to tackle deeper issues — like curbing prime ministerial patronage and reducing the bloated size of the upper chamber. And in Dorking, faith and politics collide over assisted dying. Please help us by completing our Listener Survey. It will only take a few minutes.

04 Jul 2025
Read more

News / Parliament Matters Bulletin: What’s coming up in Parliament this week? 30 June - 4 July 2025

MPs will vote on the Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill. Motions objecting to ratification of the UK–Mauritius Agreement on the Chagos Archipelago will be debated by Peers. MPs will debate the proscription of Palestine Action. Chancellor Rachel Reeves faces MPs’ oral questions and the Defence Secretary John Healey MP faces select committee scrutiny. MPs will formally approve the continued existence of the armed forces for the next 12 months, as required annually. Consideration of the Bill to create an Armed Forces Commissioner may also be completed this week. The House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill returns to the Lords for Report Stage while Peers will also scrutinise the Renters’ Rights and the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill.

29 Jun 2025
Read more

News / What Westminster gets wrong about the NHS - Parliament Matters podcast, Episode 98

We are joined this week by two guests who bring invaluable insight into the intersection of health policy and parliamentary life. Dr. Sarah Wollaston and Steve Brine – both former MPs, health policy experts, and co-hosts of the podcast Prevention is the New Cure – share their experiences of how the House of Commons handles health and social care. Please help us by completing our Listener Survey. It will only take a few minutes.

27 Jun 2025
Read more

Blog / What role does Parliament play in the Spending Review?

The UK Spending Review outlines how Government funds will be allocated over several years. Unlike the Budget, which raises revenue, the Review decides how it is spent. But how is it approved? What role does Parliament play if it doesn’t vote on the Review itself? This blog explores how the Spending Review works, how it differs from the Budget, and how Parliament holds the Government to account through the Estimates process.

09 Jun 2025
Read more

Categories

Themes

Contact

Legal

Fundraising Regulator logo