Overview
- MSPs hold a free Stage 3 vote around 10pm on Liam McArthur’s bill after 175 amendments, with eligibility limited to mentally competent adults expected to live six months or less and sign-off by two doctors.
- The Royal College of Psychiatrists in Scotland and the Royal Pharmaceutical Society in Scotland withdrew support, citing weakened safeguards after changes, though a UK deal is lined up to protect conscientious objectors if the bill passes.
- The England and Wales measure is bogged down by more than 1,200 Lords amendments, with only about half debated after 11 days and little time left before the session ends, prompting claims of procedural obstruction that opponents describe as proper scrutiny.
- Lord Falconer, steering the bill in the Lords, warns there is no realistic path this session without a shift in tactics, while a cross‑party group of roughly 150 MPs presses No 10 to guarantee parliamentary time in the next session.
- Recent moves by Jersey and the Isle of Man to legalise assisted dying have increased political pressure, underscoring diverging approaches across UK jurisdictions.