A member of the House of Lords has suggested that anyone applying for an assisted death needs to do a pregnancy test, including men and older people. Humanists UK and My Death, My Decision are disappointed that peers are proposing unworkable, wrecking, or cruel amendments to the Assisted Dying Bill and urge peers to withdraw such amendments. Peers are due to debate the Bill today.
Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson has put forward Amendment 458, which says that a person who is requesting assisted dying must provide the panel with a negative pregnancy test. This amendment would apply to any applicant, including:
- Men
- Anyone over the age of 80. No-one has ever given birth over the age of 74
- People who cannot become pregnant
- Individuals unable to produce a test due to their illness
- Individuals with days or weeks to live
This is just one of the 131 amendments that Baroness Grey-Thompson, a crossbench peer, has put forward to the Assisted Dying Bill. Analysis by Humanists UK and My Death, My Decision has shown that seven of the most vocal opponents to the Bill have put forward over 600 amendments between them.
Help us support the Assisted Dying Bill and stop the filibustering in the House of Lords. Raise the issue and send a message to peers today.
Peers have been accused of attempting to filibuster the Bill, essentially causing it to fail by proposing an unreasonable number of amendments and deliberately making unnecessary speeches in order to time it out. Analysis suggests it would take two decades to debate all the current amendments.
The Bill must pass all parliamentary stages before Spring 2026, or it fails.
Clare Turner, a mother of two with stage four breast cancer, said:
‘This amendment, which will require every applicant to provide a negative pregnancy test, with no exceptions based on age, sex, or medical condition, is both medically pointless and needlessly cruel. Imagine forcing this on men, women in their 80s or 90s, or people with terminal conditions who cannot produce urine. Imagine forcing a woman who always wanted to be a mother but was not fertile to do this, too. This would be unnecessarily upsetting and cruel.
‘I don’t think this amendment is in good faith at all; in fact, I think it’s pretty horrible. To me, this is the mask slipping, and it’s members of the House of Lords trying to kill the Bill. I’m sick of the dishonesty. This is cruelty beyond belief. I’m furious.’
Richy Thompson, Director of Public Affairs and Policy at Humanists UK, said:
‘This amendment will create unnecessary distress for many applicants and would be clinically irrelevant in a large number of cases. It fails to account for the realities of those who are terminally ill, including individuals who cannot physically take a pregnancy test or for whom the requirement would be plainly inapplicable.
‘This is part of a much wider issue. It’s crucial that peers engage with the Assisted Dying Bill in good faith and allow it to proceed through proper debate, rather than using procedural tactics to delay or obstruct it. Over 80% of the UK public supports a change in the law, and it’s important that Parliament reflects that will by allowing the Bill to progress.’
Graham Winyard, Board Member of My Death, My Decision, said:
‘This amendment is not only cruel, but shows a complete lack of thought about who it would affect. Requiring men to take a pregnancy test makes no clinical or ethical sense. It places an unnecessary burden on people who are already at the end of their lives and facing immense difficulty.
‘It’s hard to think of a clearer example of how unserious and obstructive these tactics have become. Rather than engaging with the real issues at stake, some peers are putting forward proposals that are unworkable and insensitive. That’s not how a serious debate about assisted dying should be conducted.’
Notes
For further comment or information, media should contact Nathan Stilwell at nathan@humanists.uk or phone 07456 200033. (media only)
A pregnant person having an assisted death would virtually never arise because a woman with a terminal prognosis of six months would likely miscarry naturally. We aren’t aware of a single case internationally of a pregnant woman having an assisted death, and a woman’s right to choose does not change if she has received a terminal diagnosis.
Humanists UK is making the following photos available to the media to use – credit to Simona Sermont/Humanists UK – 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.
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 campaigns@humanists.uk.
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 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 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.