--- title: "Assisted Dying Bill narrowly fails – a dark day for democracy" date: "2026-09-11T14:48:35+01:00" modified: "2026-09-11T14:48:35+01:00" url: "https://humanists.uk/2026/09/11/assisted-dying-bill-narrowly-fails-a-dark-day-for-democracy/" post_id: 197305 categories: ["Assisted Dying", "News", "Wales"] --- # Assisted Dying Bill narrowly fails – a dark day for democracy ![](https://i0.wp.com/humanists.uk/wp-content/uploads/BJI_0515_Humanist-UK_Internal_26.jpg?resize=1200%2C675&ssl=1)The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill has been narrowly voted down at its Second Reading in the House of Commons. The vote was 270 in favour, 286 against. #### **Andrew Copson, Chief Executive at Humanists UK, said:** > ‘This vote provides not one extra penny for palliative care or disability support. On the contrary, it makes it less likely. And terminally ill people will still suffer, travel to Switzerland, and take their own lives in increasing numbers, while today’s inequalities continue. Where can we go from here? Those MPs who said they support assisted dying in principle but opposed this Bill should now look at the many working and compassionate assisted dying laws overseas and say exactly what they would support and the Government should facilitate this. Doing nothing is unacceptable. > > ‘This vote should never have happened. The Bill passed the Commons last year. Unelected peers, backed by well-funded religious lobbyists, have derailed a compassionate reform with overwhelming public support, and those groups will now be emboldened. The level of unprincipled misrepresentation in both briefings and the media is beyond anything I have ever seen and today is a dark day in the history of our Parliament and our democracy.’ #### **Dave Sowry, Chair of My Death, My Decision, said:** > ‘This result is a travesty and desperately disappointing, first and foremost for terminally ill adults who were living in hope of having the choice to die peacefully and on their own terms. It also leaves the current unsafe and unequal status quo exactly as it is. Those who can afford to travel to Switzerland can do so, while those who cannot are left without that choice and may be forced to endure suffering they desperately wanted the option to avoid. > > ‘We’re grateful to Lauren Edwards for bravely bringing the Bill back. This is a huge setback, but support for change has remained high for decades and we will continue to fight for a compassionate law.’ ![](https://i0.wp.com/humanists.uk/wp-content/uploads/20260717-111201-20260717-111105-Victoria-Denning.png?resize=1200%2C628&ssl=1)#### **Victoria Denning** is a former headteacher, mother of two, and humanist celebrant living in Monmouth. She received a shock terminal diagnosis this year, and said: > ‘I’m beyond devastated that MPs have voted down the Assisted Dying Bill. How is it possible that giving terminally ill people like me some agency and compassion at the very end of my life is too difficult for our politicians? The only reason this vote happened in the first place is because a small group of unelected Lords blocked the Bill – this is outrageous. > > ‘Receiving the unexpected diagnosis of mesothelioma was devastating after having lived a very full, active, and adventurous life. Being told that I probably only have a year left to live made me realise that I have been very lucky until now. But I, like many other terminally ill people, would like to decide myself when I am ready, when I am in such pain and when I have tied up all the loose ends and said my goodbyes. Today, I’ve been denied that choice.’ #### **Hannah Slater, a 38-year-old mother living with a terminal illness, said:** > ‘I’m devastated and angry. I came to Parliament and asked MPs to listen to people like me, because this is about real people who are running out of time. They ignored me. For politicians, there may be another vote. For people like me, there may not be another time. That is what makes this so hard to accept.’ #### **Labour MP Claire Hazelgrove spoke powerfully about her mother’s own terminal illness:** > ‘Mum loved life and laughter, and our family will remember her this way. In early 2024, she was told her condition had taken a significant turn. That autumn, while we debated the initial version of this bill, Mum’s pain was excruciating. She had access to good palliative care. But what we learned, the hardest of ways, is that not all pain can be palliated. I will never forget seeing her writhing and screaming in pain – at points, for weeks – none of us will. And I know of no deity that would want that… For us, it will always be a tremendous personal sadness that the current law meant that she couldn’t tell us her plan, that we couldn’t say goodbye to her. But more importantly than that, that she couldn’t say goodbye at the end of her life, or be surrounded by her loved ones, which is what she would have wanted for her death. Instead, the harmful status quo meant that Mum died alone, with photos of us around her… This is the status quo, this needs to change.’ #### **What happens next for assisted dying?** The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill has failed, and will progress no further. This does not diminish the [overwhelming public support for this change](https://natcen.ac.uk/news/public-support-assisted-dying-remains-high-and-stable), nor the [20 people who die in pain every day](https://www.ohe.org/insights/20-people-a-day-die-in-unrelieved-pain-across-the-uk-at-the-end-of-their-lives/) despite excellent palliative care. It is incredibly likely that further attempts to change the law will come forward in the future, either through a Private Member’s Bill or through other routes. [Jersey](https://humanists.uk/2026/07/09/historic-day-jerseys-assisted-dying-law-receives-royal-assent/) and the [Isle of Man](https://humanists.uk/2025/03/25/isle-of-man-passes-assisted-dying-bill-first-local-jurisdiction-to-do-so/) have both legalised assisted dying, so some UK citizens will have access to choice at the end of life as early as 2027. #### Notes For further comment or information, media should contact: - Humanists UK Head of Press and Campaign Communications Nathan Stilwell at or phone 0203 675 0959 (media only). - My Death, My Decision Campaign and Communications Manager Kerry Hogan or phone 07922 363248 Humanists UK is making the following photos available to the media to use – credit to Simona Sermont/Humanists UK – [1](https://humanists.uk/wp-content/uploads/HumanistsUKFreedomOfChoice00029.jpg), [2](https://humanists.uk/wp-content/uploads/HumanistsUKFreedomOfChoice00048.jpg), [3](https://humanists.uk/wp-content/uploads/HumanistsUKFreedomOfChoice00022.jpg), [4](https://humanists.uk/wp-content/uploads/HumanistsUKFreedomOfChoice00021.jpg), [5](https://humanists.uk/wp-content/uploads/HumanistsUKFreedomOfChoice00072-crop.jpg). Humanists UK and My Death, My Decision have people and their loved ones who would be affected by this change available for the press. If you have been affected by the current assisted dying legislation, and want to use your story to support a change in the law, please email . Humanists defend the right of each individual to live by their own personal values, and the freedom to make decisions about their own life so long as this does not result in harm to others. Humanists do not share the attitudes to death and dying held by some religious believers, in particular that the manner and time of death are for a deity to decide, and that interference in the course of nature is unacceptable. We firmly uphold the right to life but we recognise that this right carries with it the right of each individual to make their own judgement about whether their life should be prolonged in the face of pointless suffering. We recognise that any assisted dying law must contain strong safeguards and the international evidence from countries where assisted dying is legal shows that safeguards can be effective. We also believe that the choice of assisted dying should not be considered an alternative to palliative care, but should be offered together as in many other countries. [Humanists UK](https://humanists.uk/) is the national charity working on behalf of non-religious people. Powered by over 150,000 members and supporters, we advance free thinking and promote humanism to create a tolerant society where rational thinking and kindness prevail. We provide ceremonies, pastoral care, education, and support services benefitting over a million people every year and our campaigns advance humanist thinking on ethical issues, human rights, and equal treatment for all. [My Death, My Decision](http://mydeath-mydecision.org.uk/) is a grassroots campaign group that wants the law in England and Wales to allow mentally competent adults who are terminally ill or intolerably suffering from an incurable condition the option of a legal, safe, and compassionate assisted death. With the support of over 3,000 members and supporters, we advocate for an evidence-based law that would balance individual choice alongside robust safeguards and finally give the people of England and Wales choice at the end of their lives. Humanists UK and My Death, My Decision are both members of the Assisted Dying Coalition, along with Friends at the End, Humanist Society Scotland, and End of Life Choices Jersey.