Cabinet minister Louise Haigh says ‘instinct’ is to vote for assisted dying

The transport secretary has joined a growing cohort of ministers to express their stance on assisted dying and has told ITV News “my instinct is to vote in favour.”
Speaking on Sunday, Lousie Haigh said she was still making up her mind and is listening to her constituent’s views about the issue but she noted she voted in favour of the measure the last time it was brought to Parliament.
Haigh becomes the latest minister to express their view about the vote which is due to be debated by MPs on November 29.
“My instinct is to vote in favour”
Health Secretary Wes Streeting sparked controversy among MPs when he said would be voting against it and said some NHS Services might lose out if assisted dying becomes law.
He has ordered NHS officials to carry out a cost analysis of any change and has warned it could cost the health system more if a new law were to be implemented.
Labour MP Kim Leadbeater, who has drafted the bill, said Streeting’s intervention had been “disappointing and quite upsetting.”
Only terminally ill adults with less than six months to live who have a settled wish to end their lives would be eligible under the proposed law.
Ms Leadbeater and supporters of the proposed Bill say it includes “three layers of scrutiny” requiring sign-off by two doctors and a High Court judge.
Liz Kendall, the work and pensions secretary, has said she will be voting for the bill.
Shadow Home Secretary Chis Philp says he respects people’s freedom to make their own decisions when it comes to assisted dying
Shadow Home Secretary Chis Philp told ITV News he believed it was “rather naughty” of Streeting to use his position as health secretary to advance his view.
Philp said he did not want himself or anyone he knew to participate in assisted dying but he respected people’s liberty to make their own decisions and said he was currently minded to vote for the bill.
Earlier on Sunday, Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson, an 11-time gold medallist, warned changing the law could cause a “seismic shift” in the way the health system cares for people.
“I urge Parliamentarians to understand the significance of proposed changes to the law and the seismic shift it would cause to the way we choose to care for people at their most vulnerable,” she said.
“Protecting people is something the current prohibition on encouraging or assisting suicide does well,” Baroness Grey-Thompson said.
“Parliamentarians should be in no doubt that a change to this law would fundamentally alter the political and societal landscape for disabled people.”
The report from Dr John Keown, a Christian ethicist, argued the proposed law could “grease the slope” and pointed to potential extensions to include children or those living with mental and chronic illnesses or disabilities.
Baroness Grey-Thompson’s call was backed by Conservative baron and disability rights campaigner Kevin Shinkwin, who was born with brittle bone disease.
“Precedents in other jurisdictions show that safeguards are quickly eroded, and disabled people become targets by default,” he said.
“We should not be in any doubt: the stakes could not be higher.”
Research from the Nuffield Council on Bioethics (NCOB) found the majority of people support legislating assisted dying in England.
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But there are certain caveats linked to the support – including the implementation of safeguards to ensure the service could not be abused, researchers found.
The September survey found that seven in 10 (70%) people in England support a change in the law on assisted dying, and 14% oppose a change.
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